Why Google Is the New Evil Empire

[Wilikon]

You can protect yourself.
I've tuned my browser to block all cookies from google.com and I use startpage.com for my searches.

that is a good way to protect your computer but i think this whole thing is blown out of proportion if you are that unsure of your computers safety why go full rogue and use the tor browser but i have had people say even that may not be safe

I firmly disagree, their are browsers out there who will not share your data at any cost and search engines like duckduckgo who will never record your data, that's their SP. people who rant about their private information exploitation should use such softwares and apps, than just blame google and the other lads. Its business, boys.

So if I am using Google Chrome and I use duckduckgo as a search engine, will Google still be able to track my searches?

I'm usually signed into Chrome, with Gmail and Youtube signed in as well, and assume everything I do is being tracked.

Yes. Beside running a Linux distro on a brand new hard drive, you could do like hillary and manage your own email server at your home. The thing is it will not change a thing if you do stuff the fbi and most people on this planet find disgusting. They will simply come to your home and grab your server, instead of asking google to do it.

Until we move to a true decentralized search engine it will not matter if it is google search or bing, etc.

youtube, google search those:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium

http://www.iredmail.org/

[Spendulus]

You can protect yourself.
I've tuned my browser to block all cookies from google.com and I use startpage.com for my searches.

that is a good way to protect your computer but i think this whole thing is blown out of proportion if you are that unsure of your computers safety why go full rogue and use the tor browser but i have had people say even that may not be safe

I firmly disagree, their are browsers out there who will not share your data at any cost and search engines like duckduckgo who will never record your data, that's their SP. people who rant about their private information exploitation should use such softwares and apps, than just blame google and the other lads. Its business, boys.

So if I am using Google Chrome and I use duckduckgo as a search engine, will Google still be able to track my searches?

I'm usually signed into Chrome, with Gmail and Youtube signed in as well, and assume everything I do is being tracked.

Yes. Beside running a Linux distro on a brand new hard drive, you could do like hillary and manage your own email server at your home. The thing is it will not change a thing if you do stuff the fbi and most people on this planet find disgusting. They will simply come to your home and grab your server, instead of asking google to do it.

Until we move to a true decentralized search engine it will not matter if it is google search or bing, etc.

youtube, google search those:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium

http://www.iredmail.org/

Your link reminds me of something I was wondering about.

How many still believe the latest "update" you are commanded to install is in fact anything remotely related to a program bug fix update? 

The fantastic number and variety of "updates" you are continually told to install suggests otherwise.

How many have any awareness of their machine's upstream data reporting?

[Wilikon]

You can protect yourself.
I've tuned my browser to block all cookies from google.com and I use startpage.com for my searches.

that is a good way to protect your computer but i think this whole thing is blown out of proportion if you are that unsure of your computers safety why go full rogue and use the tor browser but i have had people say even that may not be safe

I firmly disagree, their are browsers out there who will not share your data at any cost and search engines like duckduckgo who will never record your data, that's their SP. people who rant about their private information exploitation should use such softwares and apps, than just blame google and the other lads. Its business, boys.

So if I am using Google Chrome and I use duckduckgo as a search engine, will Google still be able to track my searches?

I'm usually signed into Chrome, with Gmail and Youtube signed in as well, and assume everything I do is being tracked.

Yes. Beside running a Linux distro on a brand new hard drive, you could do like hillary and manage your own email server at your home. The thing is it will not change a thing if you do stuff the fbi and most people on this planet find disgusting. They will simply come to your home and grab your server, instead of asking google to do it.

Until we move to a true decentralized search engine it will not matter if it is google search or bing, etc.

youtube, google search those:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium

http://www.iredmail.org/

Your link reminds me of something I was wondering about.

How many still believe the latest "update" you are commanded to install is in fact anything remotely related to a program bug fix update? 

The fantastic number and variety of "updates" you are continually told to install suggests otherwise.

How many have any awareness of their machine's upstream data reporting?

Beside a total number of less than 5 apps on my windows machine I can do everything else on linux. I toyed around but that new windows 10 is so cool, I'll be booting into it ONLY when I need to use those apps (that can't be used on Wine). They are pushing and pushing then ask why people lose their trust in their company...

We were supposed to forget we have options. MORE options now than ever.

https://www.winehq.org/

[Spendulus]

You can protect yourself.
I've tuned my browser to block all cookies from google.com and I use startpage.com for my searches.

that is a good way to protect your computer but i think this whole thing is blown out of proportion if you are that unsure of your computers safety why go full rogue and use the tor browser but i have had people say even that may not be safe

I firmly disagree, their are browsers out there who will not share your data at any cost and search engines like duckduckgo who will never record your data, that's their SP. people who rant about their private information exploitation should use such softwares and apps, than just blame google and the other lads. Its business, boys.

So if I am using Google Chrome and I use duckduckgo as a search engine, will Google still be able to track my searches?

I'm usually signed into Chrome, with Gmail and Youtube signed in as well, and assume everything I do is being tracked.

Yes. Beside running a Linux distro on a brand new hard drive, you could do like hillary and manage your own email server at your home. The thing is it will not change a thing if you do stuff the fbi and most people on this planet find disgusting. They will simply come to your home and grab your server, instead of asking google to do it.

Until we move to a true decentralized search engine it will not matter if it is google search or bing, etc.

youtube, google search those:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium

http://www.iredmail.org/

Your link reminds me of something I was wondering about.

How many still believe the latest "update" you are commanded to install is in fact anything remotely related to a program bug fix update? 

The fantastic number and variety of "updates" you are continually told to install suggests otherwise.

How many have any awareness of their machine's upstream data reporting?

Beside a total number of less than 5 apps on my windows machine I can do everything else on linux. I toyed around but that new windows 10 is so cool, I'll be booting into it ONLY when I need to use those apps (that can't be used on Wine). They are pushing and pushing then ask why people lose their trust in their company...

We were supposed to forget we have options. MORE options now than ever.

https://www.winehq.org/

Aren't virtual OS systems like Virtualbox simpler and more reliable?

[Wilikon]

You can protect yourself.
I've tuned my browser to block all cookies from google.com and I use startpage.com for my searches.

that is a good way to protect your computer but i think this whole thing is blown out of proportion if you are that unsure of your computers safety why go full rogue and use the tor browser but i have had people say even that may not be safe

I firmly disagree, their are browsers out there who will not share your data at any cost and search engines like duckduckgo who will never record your data, that's their SP. people who rant about their private information exploitation should use such softwares and apps, than just blame google and the other lads. Its business, boys.

So if I am using Google Chrome and I use duckduckgo as a search engine, will Google still be able to track my searches?

I'm usually signed into Chrome, with Gmail and Youtube signed in as well, and assume everything I do is being tracked.

Yes. Beside running a Linux distro on a brand new hard drive, you could do like hillary and manage your own email server at your home. The thing is it will not change a thing if you do stuff the fbi and most people on this planet find disgusting. They will simply come to your home and grab your server, instead of asking google to do it.

Until we move to a true decentralized search engine it will not matter if it is google search or bing, etc.

youtube, google search those:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium

http://www.iredmail.org/

Your link reminds me of something I was wondering about.

How many still believe the latest "update" you are commanded to install is in fact anything remotely related to a program bug fix update? 

The fantastic number and variety of "updates" you are continually told to install suggests otherwise.

How many have any awareness of their machine's upstream data reporting?

Beside a total number of less than 5 apps on my windows machine I can do everything else on linux. I toyed around but that new windows 10 is so cool, I'll be booting into it ONLY when I need to use those apps (that can't be used on Wine). They are pushing and pushing then ask why people lose their trust in their company...

We were supposed to forget we have options. MORE options now than ever.

https://www.winehq.org/

Aren't virtual OS systems like Virtualbox simpler and more reliable?

Yes. I use it often when I am toying with linux distros. My old pc can handle virtual stuff easy thanks to multicore blah blah. But if you want full access to every ounce of juice of your machine, the lesser it does the better it will fly. When I turn on windows I wonder why is my drive spins that long. When you boot in linux, you are in. Done. The drive stops spinning. No more long light of drive activity like in windows when you are looking at your desktop...

"The fantastic number and variety of "updates" you are continually told to install suggests otherwise."... That is EXACTLY why I am thinking why wait for windows to do its stuff, then boot up virtualbox, then load an image, then go on bitcointalk.... Just restart and boom. No more behind the scene file collections and activities, etc...

[Spendulus]

You can protect yourself.
I've tuned my browser to block all cookies from google.com and I use startpage.com for my searches.

that is a good way to protect your computer but i think this whole thing is blown out of proportion if you are that unsure of your computers safety why go full rogue and use the tor browser but i have had people say even that may not be safe

I firmly disagree, their are browsers out there who will not share your data at any cost and search engines like duckduckgo who will never record your data, that's their SP. people who rant about their private information exploitation should use such softwares and apps, than just blame google and the other lads. Its business, boys.

So if I am using Google Chrome and I use duckduckgo as a search engine, will Google still be able to track my searches?

I'm usually signed into Chrome, with Gmail and Youtube signed in as well, and assume everything I do is being tracked.

Yes. Beside running a Linux distro on a brand new hard drive, you could do like hillary and manage your own email server at your home. The thing is it will not change a thing if you do stuff the fbi and most people on this planet find disgusting. They will simply come to your home and grab your server, instead of asking google to do it.

Until we move to a true decentralized search engine it will not matter if it is google search or bing, etc.

youtube, google search those:

https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium

http://www.iredmail.org/

Your link reminds me of something I was wondering about.

How many still believe the latest "update" you are commanded to install is in fact anything remotely related to a program bug fix update? 

The fantastic number and variety of "updates" you are continually told to install suggests otherwise.

How many have any awareness of their machine's upstream data reporting?

Beside a total number of less than 5 apps on my windows machine I can do everything else on linux. I toyed around but that new windows 10 is so cool, I'll be booting into it ONLY when I need to use those apps (that can't be used on Wine). They are pushing and pushing then ask why people lose their trust in their company...

We were supposed to forget we have options. MORE options now than ever.

https://www.winehq.org/

Aren't virtual OS systems like Virtualbox simpler and more reliable?

Yes. I use it often when I am toying with linux distros. My old pc can handle virtual stuff easy thanks to multicore blah blah. But if you want full access to every ounce of juice of your machine, the lesser it does the better it will fly. When I turn on windows I wonder why is my drive spins that long. When you boot in linux, you are in. Done. The drive stops spinning. No more long light of drive activity like in windows when you are looking at your desktop...

"The fantastic number and variety of "updates" you are continually told to install suggests otherwise."... That is EXACTLY why I am thinking why wait for windows to do its stuff, then boot up virtualbox, then load an image, then go on bitcointalk.... Just restart and boom. No more behind the scene file collections and activities, etc...

Good points.  I moved away from Windows three years ago and hate to go back even for minutes.

[dodgecharger]

there has been a growing mentality that Google is becoming too big and are collecting too much data
When you think about it that is a lot of stuff Google has it's hands in

[ivanst776]

I enjoy using Google services and I think they are some of the best online services around, but when I step back and think about it it is pretty crazy how much Google knows about me.

[Spendulus]

I enjoy using Google services and I think they are some of the best online services around, but when I step back and think about it it is pretty crazy how much Google knows about me.

Many of their services are not terribly great.  The Chrome browser, for example.  Google+, for another example.

There's no reason to allow a data aggregator like Google to have access to your every thought through a browser interface.  That's your decision.

[wxa7115]

While Google is one of the most powerful entities(and a monopoly) it's quite easy to avoid it(especially if you don't use android). Don't use Google Chrome, Gmail, Blogger, or their search engine. There are good alternatives like firefox/palemoon/opera, you can buy an email for like 60 dollars a year that has PGP capabilities, and there are alternatives like duckduckgo and other search engines, If you are worried about Google analytics and stuff like that you can use Noscript and refuse to accept cookies.

[Wilikon]

Google Ideas assembles the usual suspects to help combat online abuse


Those familiar with #GamerGate should recognize some of those people right away, but suffice it to say that group does not consist of cyber security experts, criminal investigators, master psychologists, or pretty much anyone who could contribute productively to stopping Internet trolls from making life miserable for everyone.  Instead Google Ideas picked out a handful of the same feminist agitators, social justice warriors, professional victims, and all around despicable personalities that have been the bane of the Internet for at least a year now.

Of the bunch, Anita Sarkeesian is probably the one most recognizable to HotAir readers since Jazz reported on her cancelling a talk last year.  She’s made a small fortune off accusing the video game industry of being a misogyny factory with her Feminist Frequency videos, and she’s parlayed the inevitable backlash she’s received into being the go-to spokesperson for anyone interested in talking about women getting harassed online.

Gamers will note Zoe Quinn’s on that list too.  Quinn’s the infamous creator of the game, and I use that word as loosely as possible, Depression Quest whose dalliances with members of the video game press created the conflicts of interest that sparked the #GamerGate movement.  Just a few days ago a judge finally tossed out the unconstitutional gag order she had placed on her ex-boyfriend to stop him from airing any more of her dirty laundry online, but despite that she’ll be joining Sarkeesian to talk about cyber violence at the UN today.

Rose Eveleth you may remember from the #ShirtStorm incident, as she was one of those people who thought Dr. Matt Taylor’s choice of apparel was more important than him having landed a probe on a comet for the first time in human history:

http://hotair.com/archives/2015/09/24/google-ideas-assembles-the-usual-suspects-to-help-combat-online-abuse/

[Wilikon]

Google will let companies target ads using your email address


Google will soon let advertisers tap into one of the most lucrative types of ad targeting: email addresses. The search giant is rolling out a new tool called Customer Match, which lets advertisers use a list of email addresses to target specific users across Google services. To be targeted through this technique, you only need to be logged into your Google account and have given your email address to a retailer, perhaps by buying something from their website or giving it out to sign up for a loyalty program. Google says the individual email addresses are anonymized through Customer Match. That means companies won't be able to create personalized profiles of individuals, but they will still be compiling lists with general customer habits like YouTube viewing and Google search histories to target ads with.

For instance, Google will let a retailer you've shopped at upload your email address to Customer Match so that it can serve up ads while you're watching YouTube, searching Google for related products, or checking your Gmail inbox while signed into that email account. The ad product also lets companies create a general audience profile based on existing customers' habits and interests to target new customers when they use Google services.

Google rose to the upper echelon of tech titans by amassing a lion's share of the web advertising market. Now, the company is looking for new forms of ad revenue as more consumers gravitate toward mobile devices, where an ad's money-making potential is reduced. Further complicating Google's position are strategic moves from Apple and Facebook to reduce the strength of the web. Apple is doing this by allowing new ad-blocking software on iOS 9, accessible only from using its own mobile Safari web browser as opposed to Google's Chrome. Facebook, on the other hand, has created a robust web and mobile ad service from within its social network while expanding the variety of the web's information, from news articles to videos, users can access right from their News Feed.

By tapping into email addresses, as both Facebook and Twitter do with their own respective products, Google can take higher cuts of the more costly and better targeted ads being served even from within the Gmail and YouTube apps on mobile devices. Google calls Customer Match a "privacy-safe" product, but that may not quell the concern of users who feel that advertisers are getting even more specific with their ad targeting.


http://www.theverge.com/2015/9/28/9410975/google-customer-match-ad-targeting-email-addresses

[mtnsaa]

Look guys, they just want to sell you stuff, they are not after your freedom, many of you sound like lunatics honestly. It's all about the money, aren't we all chasing the same pipedream afterall?

[Wilikon]

Look guys, they just want to sell you stuff, they are not after your freedom, many of you sound like lunatics honestly. It's all about the money, aren't we all chasing the same pipedream afterall?

Yeah...
By the way, can you share with us all your google research you've made in the past 6 months? Don't tell us you are using duckduckgo, that would be lame...
Also, when I clicked on your profile it says your email was hidden... We are not trying to sell you stuff... You don't need to hide from us.

Aren't we all for total openness on the internet and not care about what people know about us, what we buy, from clothing to a specific prescription?

What's your real email address? Do you have a facebook account? I need to link your bitcointalk.org profile to your google research, to your email address to your facebook to the prescription you are taking, you and your family...

Nothing to fear if you have nothing to hide...

 

[mtnsaa]

Look guys, they just want to sell you stuff, they are not after your freedom, many of you sound like lunatics honestly. It's all about the money, aren't we all chasing the same pipedream afterall?

Yeah...
By the way, can you share with us all your google research you've made in the past 6 months? Don't tell us you are using duckduckgo, that would be lame...
Also, when I clicked on your profile it says your email was hidden... We are not trying to sell you stuff... You don't need to hide from us.

Aren't we all for total openness on the internet and not care about what people know about us, what we buy, from clothing to a specific prescription?

What's your real email address? Do you have a facebook account? I need to link your bitcointalk.org profile to your google research, to your email address to your facebook to the prescription you are taking, you and your family...

Nothing to fear if you have nothing to hide...

 

The point is there is no evidence Google, Facebook, Apple or Microsoft want to harm us in any way, they just want to sell us stuff. I don't share my email or my facebook account and that's my right, but I know Facebook actually owns my photos and everything I write or upload to Google Drive or Gmail is kinda out there somehow. But the minute they have a leak of information, like leaked emails or personal photos (not from a hack but because they sold it) they will go down instantly trust me. They respect our personal data more than you think.

Now if you want to discuss that a government might pressure these companies for personal information, that's another story. I still don't understand off-the-grid guys in this day and age. I mean it's a miracle that the internet hasn't been regulated or censored yet (at least in most parts of the world). It shouldn't even exist as it is if you ask me considering how things are run in this world.

[Wilikon]

Look guys, they just want to sell you stuff, they are not after your freedom, many of you sound like lunatics honestly. It's all about the money, aren't we all chasing the same pipedream afterall?

Yeah...
By the way, can you share with us all your google research you've made in the past 6 months? Don't tell us you are using duckduckgo, that would be lame...
Also, when I clicked on your profile it says your email was hidden... We are not trying to sell you stuff... You don't need to hide from us.

Aren't we all for total openness on the internet and not care about what people know about us, what we buy, from clothing to a specific prescription?

What's your real email address? Do you have a facebook account? I need to link your bitcointalk.org profile to your google research, to your email address to your facebook to the prescription you are taking, you and your family...

Nothing to fear if you have nothing to hide...

 

The point is there is no evidence Google, Facebook, Apple or Microsoft want to harm us in any way, they just want to sell us stuff. I don't share my email or my facebook account and that's my right, but I know Facebook actually owns my photos and everything I write or upload to Google Drive or Gmail is kinda out there somehow. But the minute they have a leak of information, like leaked emails or personal photos (not from a hack but because they sold it) they will go down instantly trust me. They respect our personal data more than you think.

Now if you want to discuss that a government might pressure these companies for personal information, that's another story. I still don't understand off-the-grid guys in this day and age. I mean it's a miracle that the internet hasn't been regulated or censored yet (at least in most parts of the world). It shouldn't even exist as it is if you ask me considering how things are run in this world.

I believe you are missing the point why bitointalk.org was created by who you know...

[mtnsaa]

Hey, it's just my opinion and I think it's perfectly valid. I actually love the technology and it is revolutionary, it may be a paradigm shift like the press.

And I would prefer to own my online activity but then you would have to actually pay for Facebook and Google services for example like you do with Adobe, Netflix, Microsoft or the like. In my case and many others like me, we just don't really care about our "privacy" because it doesn't exist unless you live under a cave building bombs.

What I mean is, if people have actual evidence of wrong doings by these companies then it would be much easier to convince the mainstream to adopt more privacy alternatives. To 99% of the population it means nothing, doesn't affect their living in any way. I've never had any problems with my credit cards or bank accounts (I live in a third world country where banks actually take off with your savings, I've seen an economical crisis first hand), but they never robbed me and if even they did, I'm still covered by policies and insurances. People are actually afraid of Bitcoin, the "hackers" and money laundering and drug industry people that accept it, they are the ones in the shadows. That what needs to change for Bitcoin to succeed, not the other way around.

 Governments and companies ARE people. Do you really think anyone would buy a car or a house with Bitcoin when that is the wild wild west and banks and credit cards are available?

[Wilikon]

Hey, it's just my opinion and I think it's perfectly valid. I actually love the technology and it is revolutionary, it may be a paradigm shift like the press.

And I would prefer to own my online activity but then you would have to actually pay for Facebook and Google services for example like you do with Adobe, Netflix, Microsoft or the like. In my case and many others like me, we just don't really care about our "privacy" because it doesn't exist unless you live under a cave building bombs.

What I mean is, if people have actual evidence of wrong doings by these companies then it would be much easier to convince the mainstream to adopt more privacy alternatives. To 99% of the population it means nothing, doesn't affect their living in any way. I've never had any problems with my credit cards or bank accounts (I live in a third world country where banks actually take off with your savings, I've seen an economical crisis first hand), but they never robbed me and if even they did, I'm still covered by policies and insurances. People are actually afraid of Bitcoin, the "hackers" and money laundering and drug industry people that accept it, they are the ones in the shadows. That what needs to change for Bitcoin to succeed, not the other way around.

 Governments and companies ARE people. Do you really think anyone would buy a car or a house with Bitcoin when that is the wild wild west and banks and credit cards are available?

Do you believe if you do not pay for a product, you are the product?

[mtnsaa]

It doesn't matter what I believe. I believe some product prices are ridiculous and I'm know I'm overpaying but in many cases I need them, so I'm in like everyone else. I use Adobe products, if tomorrow Adobe has all its products in the cloud and owns everything (I doubt it because this is copyright protected stuff) I would have to jump on board. Or I can use the Linux alternative that no company or colleague uses and save it in another format...right.

You want it to be one way but it's the other way.

Yes, It's a quote from "The Wire" haha.

[Wilikon]

It doesn't matter what I believe. I believe some product prices are ridiculous and I'm know I'm overpaying but in many cases I need them, so I'm in like everyone else. I use Adobe products, if tomorrow Adobe has all its products in the cloud and owns everything (I doubt it because this is copyright protected stuff) I would have to jump on board. Or I can use the Linux alternative that no company or colleague uses and save it in another format...right.

You want it to be one way but it's the other way.

Yes, It's a quote from "The Wire" haha.

When you upload you photos to facebook do you lose their ownership?