John Battelle has written a book called "The Search" about Google.
"The Search" tackles such prickly subjects as the serious privacy concerns raised by the reams of data collected by Google's 175,000 computers about the millions of people who use the company's services each day.At one point, Battelle paints a disturbing picture, sketching out a scenario in which the federal government could demand that Google provide personal information about its users in the name of national security.
If that were to happen, Google would have to notify all the affected parties, right? Not under the U.S. Patriot Act, which specifically forbids companies from making disclosures about government requests for information.
Didn't know that? Don't feel bad. Neither did Brin when Battelle asked him earlier this year about the potential perils of Google becoming a secret tool for the U.S. government.
It's early morning (and I'm NOT a morning person) so excuse me if my thinking is a bit slow right now, but I'm not sure why I should be more alarmed about the government having this information than I would be about Google having it.
It's true that by using their toolbar and allowing cookies I have given Google permission to collect information about me. Any effort by the government to get the same information would be known only to the agency who wants it and the judge that approves their action without any permission from me.
Maybe my expectations are low. I figure once information about me is out there, whether collected by Google or another entitiy, I'm not going to assume it will be kept private. There are lots of sites that collect information that could be shared or sold and, considering what could be done with it, the government knowing what I'm searching for is way down the list of worries.
Posted by marybeth at September 12, 2005 06:54 AM Internet