New Privacy Policy of Google May Run into Legal Snags in Europe and the USA

What this new Google privacy policy may mean in practice is that ALL your searches will become part of a single portfolio of information about YOU and be connected to all your Google accounts and services.  Hmmm.

Now THAT could be a very serious problem of "Big Brother" really watching us.

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For the USA, Matt McGee has the story at Google’s New Privacy Policy May Violate HIPAA, Congresswoman Says


For Europe, Ian Paul at PCWorld has the story in Will Europe Upend Google's New Privacy Plan?

As Paul writes:

"Google's new privacy policy brings together more than 60 privacy policies from various Google products into one document. The new policy enables Google to consolidate your personal information strewn about various Google services so that Google can treat you as a single user across all of its products. Google currently has more than 70 individual privacy policies covering all of its services."

We use Google a lot as our main search engine, as one of our chief email providers and also via our Blogger blogs, so that we see the eminent sense for Google of consolidating all serendipity things that one person does via Google into one consolidated account. Indeed, when we accessed Blogger today, we were alerted by a notice to the upcoming change in privacy policy. However, we see searches, email and blogging as three separate services.

Is simple notification of the new privacy policy sufficient to enable it?
Can one legally justify this kind of private data consolidation?
Indeed, is it enough to permit users to opt out of logging in to escape it?

What about the interests of the users? Should they not be able to decide on an application basis what information they want to share and with whom or not? We have no doubt, for example, that Facebook will be facing an uphill legal battle in the future because of its pervasive consolidation of user information. It is rather remarkable that Facebook has gotten as far as it has.

It is a classic clash of the interests of online providers of services vs. the individual privacy interests of its users, interests that the law must protect.

There is a limit beyond which privacy invasion is so pervasive that the government will have to step in and so, "this far, and no further". Clearly, we are reaching that limit.

Frankly, we think Google is going to have to backtrack on this decision in order to avoid massive user discontent.

Berkeley California Picks Google Apps for Education Over Microsoft Office 365 and Gives Detailed List of Comparison

At Wired.com, Caleb Garling links to a detailed comparison showing why California Berkeley chose Google Apps for Education (including GMail, Google Calendar, Google Talk, Google Docs, Google Sites, Google Video for Education) over Microsoft 365.

See
Berkeley Explains Why Google Trumps Microsoft

Mark Twain Birthday Celebrated by Google Doodle Today

MARK TWAIN GOOGLE DOODLE: Panoramic 'Tom Sawyer' logo colorfully celebrates legendary Clemens - Comic Riffs - The Washington Post: - Sent using Google Toolbar

Chromebook Store at PC World in Tottenham Court: Google Opens First Retail Shop in London

Surprise, surprise, but studies show that 80% of laptop sales are still made in physical shops and stores, not online, so Google is going retail with Chromebook. Jonathan Prynn has the story at Google's first store pops up in LondonNews.

Google slips to lowest search share in two years - Computerworld

Google slips to lowest search share in two years - Computerworld: - Sent using Google Toolbar

Google, Intel team up on future Android phones, tablets - latimes.com

Google, Intel team up on future Android phones, tablets - latimes.com: - Sent using Google Toolbar

Google Gets FTC Subpoenas in Antitrust Investigation

DailyTech - Google Gets Served With FTC Subpoenas in Android Abuse Investigation: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

AdWords? 20 Most Expensive Google Keyword AdWords via WordStream and TechCrunch

Robin Wauters at TechCrunch writes about a WordStream study of What Are The 20 Most Expensive Keyword Categories In Google AdWords?

Google Denies That Google Circles Launch is Imminent

Liz Gannes at Network Effect writes that Google Denies Social Network Called Circles Will Debut Today despite the report at ReadWriteWeb.

Social Network Google Circles May Be Launched Soon to Compete with Facebook

At ReadWriteWeb, Marshall Kirkpatrick writes that Google to Launch Major New Social Network Called Circles, Possibly Today, a service which is to permit social networking while respecting the rights of privacy better than is done at Facebook.

We would definitely welcome such a service, as the privacy settings for Facebook are not set up in such a manner as to permit privacy to be adequately protected while still engaging in social networking.

Whether a competitor to Facebook can counter the massive head-start that Facebook already has globally on social networking membership is another matter.

Google enterprise chief: Data is safer on our cloud than your PC - Fortune Tech

Google enterprise chief: Data is safer on our cloud than your PC - Fortune Tech: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

LawPundit: Google and Microsoft Battle Patent Troll GeoTag

LawPundit: Google and Microsoft Battle Patent Troll GeoTag: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Google Faces Anti-Trust Problems in EU Search Engine Competition from Competitors Alleging Abuse of Dominant Market Position

Valentina Pop at EUobserver.com reports that Google facing second EU anti-trust case "for alleged abuse of its dominant market position." Google controls 80% of the European search engine market and is accused of favoring its own sites in search results. If true, Google may have trouble winning this case.

Search Engine Watch: Google's Cutts: Bing's Higher Search Success Rate Due to Bad Hitwise Data

See

Search Engine Watch: Google's Cutts: Bing's Higher Search Success Rate Due to Bad Hitwise Data

Google's New Two-Factor Identification System Breaks Apps : Too Much of a Good Thing is Too Much

At ZDNet.com Jason Perlow in Google's two-factor authentication: nice idea, but unwieldy applauds the attempt to improve user authentification but says we should be careful what we wish for, as Google's new cell phone authenticator system breaks many apps and makes daily utilization of it impossible for heavy users.