Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) has been under fire for its near omnipotency for some time now. Recently, Google received the worst possible rating from a study by Privacy International which researched the privacy practices of several of the top internet sites (read more about the study here). How much information is too much for Google to retain about its users?
Yesterday, Reuters reported that in response to criticism from the European Union, Google set a limit on the amount of time it will store users' personal information to 18 months.
I don't think it's the time frame that is disturbing but rather the amount of information Google retains about each user. Google is the world leader in Web search services and their powers are broadening into nearly every aspect of the online world you can imagine. With strategic expansions into new advertising opportunities underway through radio, television and video thanks to the purchase of YouTube, Google is lengthening it's tyrannical reach all while creating a multitude of other new Internet services. Reuters reported that privacy policy activists are complaining that Google's $3.1 billion plan to acquire DoubleClick will double the number of internet users that Google collects information about to approximately 1 billion.
It's not just searches that Google is keeping tabs on but also the contents of users' desktops (Google Desktop), the contents of users' email (Gmail) and users' daily activities outside of their homes (Google Earth and StreetView). People are finally beginning to realize how much information Google has access to about their personal lives and interests, and the public doesn't like it. Of course, Google isn't the only search engine or website that stores private information, but they are one of the biggest, meaning they have access to an exhorbitant amount of personal information, which they use regularly under the guise of improving Google's search capabilities. According to Google's blog, they retain information to:
- Improve services
- Maintain security and prevent fraud abuse
- Comply with legal obligations to retain data
As a marketer, I understand the power of understanding the demographics, trends and behaviors of consumers, but as a consumer I'm uncomfortable with the amount of information Google has access to and their need to retain it for 18 months. Nicole Wong, a Google attorney, said, "The pace of change in technology is so much faster now. Instead of a generation, or even years, we are seeing breakthrough technologies emerging in the space of months." I wonder then, if technology is changing so fast, why is Google retaining information for 18 months. Aren't users' searches and corresponding interests changing from 18 months ago? Is the outdated information Google is hanging onto relevant or useful after 18 months? Again, I think Google's biggest problem in the eyes of public opinion is not that they're storing data but how much information they're storing.
What do you think? Does Google have access to too much data about individual users? Where is the balance between building useful marketing tools from that data and having too much data to use it effectively?
Related articles from the Know More Media blog network:
Google, Health Search Engines & Your Privacy
Google Reduces Search History Storage to 18 Months - down from 24 months
It's the other way around. In 50 Secrets of Success Powering the World's Largest Search Engine Company, I offer 50 reasons the search giant grew rapidly and wealthy in such an historically abbreviated period of time. Many of the secrets are older than the hills, but they were executed better. There is much to learn from its success. More companies will evolve similarly in the future.
Posted by: Brenda J. Flinn | June 19, 2007 5:37 PM | Permalink to Comment