Listen up Google account holders, you only have a few remaining hours before the web search giant enforces its new privacy policy set to take effect March 1. The U.S. Internet company said in January that it was abridging its privacy policy, combining data on users from all of its platforms–search, Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps, Google+ and the Android operating system to name a few. Since users cannot opt out of the changes, it’s caused quite a stir among consumer and privacy advocates, public officials and international government agencies.
The company is reminding users that they won’t be collecting any more data than they were before and the new terms have several added perks–more accurate web search results, features that work across various platforms, and more targeted advertisements–however, as Internet watch dogs have expressed, folks aren’t buying it.
Google’s shift from profiling users separately on each of its products and sites to a single compilation of data found in profile form has users up in arms. Â The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a San Francisco-based nonprofit foundation that advocates for online privacy and digital right, stated: “Search data can reveal particularly sensitive information about you, including facts about your location, interests, age, sexual orientation, religion, health concerns, and more.”
BlackEnterprise.com has a few quick pointers on tip toeing around Google’s privacy policy (or at least will allow you to cruise the Internet with greater ease).
Forget signing in
Many Google services don’t require users to sign in, so don’t even bother. If you are not logged into Google + or Gmail, Google won’t know who you are and, thus, can’t add data to your profile. Happy searching!
Turn off Google search history
Sign in to your Google account. Then go to www.google.com/history or go to “Account Settings†menu at the top of your navigation settings. Go to the “Services†section and choose whether you’d like to view, enable or disable your web history.
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