I know I'm hitting you with a lot of posts today but this is another heads-up I thought was important to share, especially as today is the last day you can do anything about it.
As of March 1st Google's privacy policy changes will allow it to officially compile, store and use information from your past, present and future online browsing, searches and other formerly private internet activities (they already have tons of stored data on you; this change allows them to use it for their own purposes.)
If you do not want Google to do this to you and your info, instructions on how to clear your Google Browser history and prevent Google from using it in the future can be found here at digitaljournal.com. I used these instructions and they worked fine for me.
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There's been a lot of misinformation about the new Google Privacy Policy.
ReplyDeleteThe kinds and amount of information that they store has not changed.
Their policy on commercial use of this information has not changed.
The only thing that has changed is that -- when you are logged into a Google account -- information collected by one application can be used by another.
Full details at: http://www.google.com/policies/privacy/preview/
Thanks for the info, Katherine. I've read a few more articles about the new policy, which contain disturbing warnings that are reading between the lines of the policy. It will be interesting to see exactly how this plays out.
ReplyDeleteIn the meantime, to err on the side of caution I still recommend people who want to preserve their online privacy take advantage of the chance to clear their Google browser history today.
I cleared mine earlier this morning. If nothing else it will stop Google from giving me location-specific search results that would be helpful possibly if my book wasn't set on the opposite coast. Of an alternate timeline.
ReplyDeleteAlso, happy early release? I'm still waiting to next week to buy.
Thanks, Lynn!
ReplyDeleteThank you, I followed your advice and followed the directions at digitaljournal.com. Thank you again.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads-up Lynn! My husband and I are both taking steps to protect our privacy.
ReplyDeleteHi Lynn! Thanks for the heads up! Just an FYI, I think it is misinformation that you cannot pause or clear you web history after March 1 as I just saw this today and logged into my history to see what was up and what I can do about it. I found my history was blank and I was still able to use the "clear history" option to pause it. This was a relief because I have way too much tied to my gmail accounts to consider abandoning Google altogether. Thanks for keeping us informed!
ReplyDeleteDiDi