NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] Washington Post: "Google announces privacy changes across products; users can't opt out"
Washington Post: "Google announces privacy changes across products; users can't opt out"
http://j.mp/AsF3ZO (This message on Google+)
- - -
http://j.mp/zLXtGt (Washington Post)
"Google said Tuesday it will follow the activities of users across
e-mail, search, YouTube and other services, a shift in strategy that
is expected to invite greater scrutiny of its privacy and competitive
practices."
- - -
There is certainly going to be a lot controversy about these changes,
but fundamentally, this strikes me as more of a philosphical and
historical question than a technical policy issue. When you log into
Facebook, LinkedIn, or the like, you're generally using integrated
service structures -- distinctions between playing videos, searching,
posting, and other functions don't even really exist in the sense of
separated user data.
On the other hand, Google started as a search engine, YouTube was an
acquisition, and other new services (like Google+) came later as
follow-ons to other Google products (e.g. Buzz).
So would sharing data across those services even be an issue if
they had been originally created under a unified structure like
that of other firms? I suspect probably not, at least not
to the same degree.
Trying to enforce artificial distinctions between Google products
seems like a losing proposition for Google and most users in the long
run, and product integration would seem inevitable. A much more
critical issue is the maintenance of the existing prohibitions related
to third-party data sharing, which Google explicitly promises to
maintain.
Also, stories claiming that you can't compartment your data under the
new policy are not strictly true, because most users always have the
option of using different Google accounts for different services, and
the ability to quickly switch accounts (along with various browser
extensions that can largely or completely automate this process) make
this entirely practical if that's your preference.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein (lauren@vortex.com): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- Global Coalition for Transparent Internet Performance: http://www.gctip.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://vortex.com/g+lauren
Twitter: https://twitter.com/laurenweinstein
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com
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