Google's missing privacy policy
Posted 6/04/2008 08:25:00 AM |
In fact, Google would rather have you search for their privacy policy - using their own search box. This is troubling, as Google forces users to divulge personal information (using search queries) before one can figure out what is going to happen with the information they divulge. According to Zimmer, "much of Google’s resistance to adding a link to its privacy policy on its homepage seems to boil down to little more than aesthetics." According to a Google spokesperson, the importance of having limited text on the homepage outweighs a simple link to the privacy policy or privacy center.
This is a particularly odd situation for the web's largest personal data collection company. Google's business is our information, and we're clearly past the late 90's, do no evil phase of Google's corporate maturation. Perhaps groupthink at Google reinforces this notion, but the reality is the company is a tremendous collection of information about us - our searches and email, our clicks and health records, our financial transactions and our chat logs. Google should do the responsible thing and make privacy information easily findable. There's a huge difference between a hyperlink and a search query, and Google of all companies knows this.
Updated 7/3/2008: Google has listened to the all-powerful Zimmer, and placed a link to their privacy policy on their homepage. This news came on the same day as the YouTube-Viacom decision, so the timing is quite suspect. Nevertheless, congratulations to Google for making the right choice.
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3 Comments: (Post a Comment)
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At June 04, 2008 10:43 AM,
Travis Retzlaff said...
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Interesting insight, thanks for sharing.
One consideration that makes this less "evil" is the rise in navigational search.
The URL is Dead, Long Live Search
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/the_url_is_dead_long_live_search.php#more
I personally find it easier in a lot of cases to use search functionality to get me where I want to go even if I have the URL bookmarked or remember how to click through a site to get to a specific area.
I know friends and family who almost never use bookmarks or type URL's in address bars, relying entirely on navigational search. -
At June 04, 2008 10:56 AM,
fred said...
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Travis,
I agree - and I'm the same way. I think the greater point is that for most of us, we won't even know that the privacy policy exists unless its linked to. Folks like Zimmer and I will go search it out, but the rest of us...probably not. I think the argument is that the privacy policy is *so* important that it deserves the real estate. People should know it exists. -
At June 06, 2008 6:14 PM,
Bertil Hatt said...
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Isn't it where you would expect it to be? -- Not that a direct link wouldn't be better, but still. . .
And, I'm not sure most people would care, or understand a privacy policy: shouldn't Google efforts be focused on explaining why it is needed, or lobbying for governemental standards (something they do)?
