CNET Points Out Some Scary Features in Chrome: Read Before Using
According to Cnet.com, the auto suggest feature of Chrome will give Google a wealth of information on what people are searching for on the Internet
Provided that users leave Chrome’s auto-suggest feature on and have Google as their default search provider, Google will have access to any keystrokes that are typed into the browser’s Address/Search bar, even before a user hits enter.
Of even more concern is Google intends to retaining some of that data.
A Google representative told CNET that the company plans to store about 2% of that data, and plans to store it along with the IP address of the computer that typed it.
In theory, that means that if one were to type the address of a site, even if they decide not to hit enter, they could leave incriminating evidence on Google’s servers.
To avoid this you just have to turn off the auto-suggest feature on Chrome, or you can select a search provider other than Google as your default engine.
It was only last year that the US government sued Google to release a portion of their search results, looking for adult searches, without IP address.
If the government wants to subpoena the search records of Google in the future, such records might lead them right to your door.
It is also interesting to note that in playing with Chrome, its seems that it will not suggest the .com for any adult domain, even sex, youporn or porno (sorry Rick).
Chrome does however suggest the .com for gambling sites like poker, partypoker and sportsbooks.
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This kind of spying (let’s call it what it really is, shall we) is reason enough for all Internet users who care about their personal privacy; including me; to stick with Firefox.
Mike,
Weren’t you the one saying that google was going to get 20% market share with this new fangled browser?
Really?
Richard
Yes I did and I’m sticking to it.
Not many people will realize or care that Google collects this info at least until someone gets in trouble.
Steve
Me too
Lately I have been getting a ton of traffic to Jewel.Mobi I didnt now why….it went for 2 or 3 people a day if i was lucky to 50, 60 even 70 ata minimum visitors per day/ I didn’t know why. I downloaded Google chrome and started to type in the word jewel and sure enough Jewel.Mobi came up as a suggestion. Could this mean a BOOM for .Mobi from Google?
Jeff
I don’t think it means a boom for .mobi, but it does mean as I discussed yesterday that the suggestions will be taken by a portion of the users taking away traffic from type-in’s
BTW jewel.mobi did not come up for me.
Only suggestion I got was jewelosco.com
@ Jeffrey Tognetti ….. no .mobi will never have a boom under any circumstances.
If you notice, no search of your parked domains in Chrome will add the .com……. only developed names.
Check out RumCake.com (developed) and RumCakes.com (parked), and see which search wants to add the .com as you type.
The greatest invasion of an individuals privacy online in the History is the google way.
If you do not like this google simply do NOT advertise with them and do not use anything associated with them – The Consumer is king and google is NOTHING without the consumer (also called CUSTOMER).