Google’s Privacy Policy

I’m writing an article about Google’s new Privacy Policy. Tell me if you have any comments. Reading it, it seems like they’re actually trying to be transparent. The broader point is not the privacy policy but the fact that they’re combining all of their services into one account. Google AdWords comparatively sucks compared to Facebook Ads (for many things) because the latter targets people (rather than clicks). Advertisers can reach people demographically, by interest, which is what they want. Google seems to be trying to bridge that gap by getting a better sense of you.

What this means in practice is that your behavior across Search, Maps, YouTube, etc, will be combined to provide a better product and, more importantly, serve you better ads. Google is actually more transparent than Facebook in this regard, but it still gets more blowback.

Honestly, Google is like the nerd who helps you with your homework whereas Facebook is a friend. People voluntarily tell Facebook everything, but Google has to sit on the sidelines, just listening. Even if Google is better (or equally) well-intentioned, it still comes off as creepy.

Anyways, that’s my general impression. If you have a sense of the new privacy policy, do tell me what you think.