Google’s Anonymizer Not So Hot

by John Biggs on September 12, 2008

Privacy concerns have dogged the world’s most popular search engine for years, and Google’s responses have been less than the shining example of “Don’t be evil” we expect them to make. They only recently halved the retention period for personal information to nine months, but even then their anonymizing process is simply changing the last digit in the logged IP. Diabolical! Even Microsoft completely eliminates IPs from search tracking data eventually.

Comments

Andrew C - September 12th, 2008 at 2:20 pm PDT

Um. FIRST!

(Just because I’ve never been before… I’m a D-bag, I know.)

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Shayne - September 12th, 2008 at 2:30 pm PDT

Busted link to CrunchGear FYI

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Merredith - September 12th, 2008 at 2:42 pm PDT

Was really looking forward to reading the rest of the story… can we keep it on TC or fix the link to CrunchGear? Thanks.

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Justin - September 12th, 2008 at 2:56 pm PDT

Click “Read More!” on the TC front page, only to have to click “Read More!” again to be taken to CrunchBase?

I like the new TC layout aesthetically, but I read far more TC articles now, and spend far less time on TC now, because I have to click-through to read each and every one. I understand why the decision was made, but from an END USER standpoint, it’s terrible.

You went from a design where you could load up TechCrunch.com and read the 10 latest stories, to a design where 10 clicks are needed to read 10 stories. How is that superior, for the user? It’s not like TC was hurting for pageviews…

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Justin - September 12th, 2008 at 2:57 pm PDT

I meant that I read far *less* TC articles now in Paragraph 2 up there. Not far more :p

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Marcio - September 12th, 2008 at 4:13 pm PDT

Maybe they want to keep geographical information.

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Robert Accettura - September 12th, 2008 at 5:50 pm PDT

Strange that they couldn’t replace the IP with something like country#.municipal#.hash(IP,salt()).

Would still track people (anonymously though), and give information regarding location, just like a real IP.

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Craig Quiter - September 12th, 2008 at 8:59 pm PDT

How does anyone ever really know what is done with data after we send it to a company? Unless they misuse it, we don’t. Are there third party checks on making sure privacy policy is upheld? No, and there shouldn’t be. It would just be a waste of time. If Google, Microsoft or anybody else, publishes, sells, or gives personally sensitive data away, we will eventually find out, lose trust in that company and abandon it. Something very easily done with Google since its monopoly is not a result of customer lock-in. As much as we whine about privacy policy, we really don’t know or have any control over what companies do anyway. We just have to trust them until we find reason not to. The same goes with people.

All that said, Google is probably the only company who actually does what they say with personal data. I would be amazed if anybody actually trusts Microsoft to do what they say.

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marc - September 12th, 2008 at 11:26 pm PDT

Google filters out search results in China for words like “democracy”.
They kiss the hands of dictators.

To make money.
To make money.
To make money.

So can we trust Google?
We can trust Google to make money.
-like Cisco-
Cisco built the biggest digital prison ever made by humans.
How alien, how despicable and how easy they get away with it.

Google and Cisco just don’t give a damn and changing data instead of destroying data is just another insult to our intelligence.

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Adam - September 12th, 2008 at 11:54 pm PDT

Microsoft makes money by selling software that is installed on computers. Essentially you can never communicate with MS ever again if that is your choice.

Yet Google gives all of their stuff away for free. Why? Because they make money by selling advertising. How do they do that? By keeping track of its users.

You can hate Microsoft for its monopoly but if you think Google acts in the public good, you are sorely mistaken.

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- Craig Quiter - September 13th, 2008 at 2:53 pm PDT
  
  Should people stop using Google then?
  
  If Microsoft shared usage data received through things like automatic updates, license registrations or product patches, would it be easy to use another OS or another suite of office tools?
  
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John D. - September 13th, 2008 at 12:04 pm PDT

The Internet now is being censored in the U.S. exactly the same as in Communist China. Steps are being taken to limit what web sites Americans will be allowed to visit.

http://www.youtube.com:80/watc.....amp;fmt=18

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Serviced Apartments Bangalore - September 14th, 2008 at 11:21 pm PDT

google is pure evil…

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jozi - November 21st, 2008 at 12:52 pm PST

yea you are are D-BAG! ;p

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