May 28 2008
Google Fights for the Right to Party (Hide Its Privacy Policy)
Saul Hansell got my attention yesterday with his NY Times Technology story titled “Google Fights for the Right to Hide Its Privacy Policy“.
The article starts off with a telling comparison:
What’s one way that Google is different from AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft? It’s the only one of the big Internet companies that doesn’t put a link to its privacy policy on its home page.
There also was some speculation in the article that this may be a preemptive move in advance of some advertising strategy changes to make it more competitive:
So why would Google apply to be a member? Some Internet executives wonder whether it is getting ready to start some sort of targeting system that might help its graphic ad network compete better with AOL’s more successful Advertising.com and others that do make use of information about users.
What I found most concerning is a quote by Steve Langdon, a Google spokesman:
We believe it is important for consumers to be able to easily find privacy policies and other privacy information. By simply typing ‘Google privacy policy’ into the Google search engine, consumers can easily find not only our privacy policy, but additional information about privacy.
Google why do you think this is ok? In my opinion this is just another example of blurring the rules so you can change them when it suits you too.
Google did you know that the Better Business Bureau requires all of members to Post and Adhere to a Privacy Policy?
Online advertisers should post and adhere to a privacy policy that is open, transparent, and meets generally accepted fair information principles including providing notice as to what personal information the online advertiser collects, uses, and discloses; what choices customers have with regard to the business’ collection, use and, disclosure of that information; what access customers have to the information; what security measures are taken to protect the information, and what enforcement and redress mechanisms are in place to remedy any violations of the policy. The privacy policy should be easy to find and understand and be available prior to or at the time the customer provides any personally identifiable information.
I believe that Google should be held to a higher standard, not a lesser one. What do you think?
Our Monmouth: If Google can assert its legal terms just by publishing them, then users can assert their own terms of privacy protection just by publishing them! What do you think? –Ben http://hack-igations.blogspot......rvice.html
Ben – beside the legal obligations I think Google needs to do the right thing. The bottom line is that not prominently displaying your policy is a shady business practice and well beneath the standard Google should be held to.
Well normally Google are so on top of this kind of thing – I notice on my igoogle homepage that the privacy policy link has a pride of place at the bottom. Maybe this has been cleared up now then?
The bigger you get, the more transparent you have to be and a company who get so much say in how we should and should not build our websites must ensure they live by their own standards.
Cheers, Dan
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