by Everyone is talking about removing their google search history and I was about to do that, but stopped. I need to research this more. Do I really want to? My question is, will anybody be able to search my web history? I agree it could be pretty embarrassing, but not horribly so. I search my name more than anything (to see if anyone is reading my books) and nail polish shades. Okay, and cute animal pictures. You got me.
From the EFF:
“Google’s new unified privacy policy will take effect on March 1. All the data Google automatically gathers about you, such as the sites you visit, will be dumped into one virtual bucket with your name on it. While you can’t opt out of the new approach without abandoning Google sites, you can erase your browsing history.
“Search data can reveal particularly sensitive information about you, including facts about your location, interests, age, sexual orientation, religion, health concerns, and more,” warns the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit organization based in San Francisco and an advocate for online privacy.
“If you delete your Google Web History that includes the searches you’ve made and the sites you’ve visited, you’ll prevent Google from associating that data with information it has collected from other Google sites you use such as YouTube and Gmail. While no one knows exactly how Google would use your combined information, the policy changes have already prompted more than raised eyebrows.”
We spotted each other immediately. It was true love.
How does one do it?
See http://www.popularmechanics.com/how-to/blog/should-you-delete-your-google-web-history-6814034
and
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/02/how-remove-your-google-search-history-googles-new-privacy-policy-takes-effect
Thank you tagryn! I will definately be removing my search history.
I think ths is an awful turn of events and bad google policy.