Understanding Google

 Understanding Google

Some time ago, the internet community was utterly terrified. The vast amounts of personal information that may be gathered from people who use search engines online were at the heart of the problem. The National Security agencies tasked with uncovering any and all potential terrorist "sleeper cells" in the nation were understandably captivated by this massive data set.

Understanding Google

The dispute arose when the government started demanding that the big search engines provide all of their users' search histories. Many of us who rely on search engines for both personal and corporate research started to experience the "big brother is watching" sensation when this impending battle for privacy started to heat up.

This trade-off is difficult. Our government must be able to identify security threats and eliminate them if we do not want another September 11th, 2001. On the other hand, Americans fiercely defend their freedoms, privacy, and the right to be unfettered by the state.

Among the many search engines that garnered attention during that conflict, Google's stand against the excessive violation of their customers' privacy stood out as a courageous act in the face of tremendous opposition. Homeland Security wasn't becoming "big brother" after all; they were just looking into ways to use statistics to potentially identify terrorist trends in search engine usage. However, many of us recall that Google was the one who refused to hand up user data to the government right away, protecting user privacy, while Yahoo and others caved in.

Standing firm in its commitment to safeguarding user data is in line with Google's long-standing corporate ethic. Beyond reassuring us that Google is a trustworthy tool, there are further advantages to its defensive nature.

Indeed, Google does have access to a vast trove of personally identifiable information about everyone who uses its search engines. Because Google is the most popular search engine, this potential is available to anyone with an internet connection.

Any number of personal details about us, such as our interests, occupation, religious beliefs, and political leanings, can be gleaned from the data acquired from our online activities. Both the government and marketers are interested in having the ability to target certain groups for sales, and powerful analytical tools are available to take massive amounts of search data and turn them into profiles.

As Google continues to refine its search engine algorithms, this information is highly valuable to them. They can systematically examine this data to determine the efficacy of their search tools and how to modify their underlying algorithms to better suit the way internet users navigate cyberspace.

As far as I can tell, this is an attempt to consolidate their existing strong position and strengthen their toolkit so that they can maintain their lead. Though we can't say we blame Google for its data use, Business as usual.

Because of this, it is clear that Google's guarded attitude toward their enormous database of search data is highly effective. If Google can keep this pile of sensitive data private, it will be a valuable trade secret that will allow them to continue dominating the market for the foreseeable future.

In this instance, market demands really benefit society as a whole. In the same way that Google safeguards our search data so that no one other than Google can profit from it, it also safeguards our privacy from terrorists, hackers, marketing campaigns, and overzealous government authorities. That Google is so protective of this information while utilizing it for its own purposes is something for which we should be grateful. 

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