Google is making waves today with the news that it has changed its privacy policies to shorten the time frame during which it keeps personally identifiable search data to 18 to 24 months. Google’s policy had been to keep the data on file indefinitely.
On its official blog, the company provides more detail. Although Google will keep search records on file for as long as it needs them to analyze usage patterns and system problems, search records will be “anonymized” after 18 to 24 months by, in essence, corrupting the IP addresses associated with the records.
Unless we’re legally required to retain log data for longer, we will anonymize our server logs after a limited period of time. When we implement this policy change in the coming months, we will continue to keep server log data (so that we can improve Google’s services and protect them from security and other abuses)—but will make this data much more anonymous, so that it can no longer be identified with individual users, after 18-24 months.
Although some privacy advocates decry Google’s new policy as setting a too-generous industry standard, in truth this is good news for most users. Contrary to what most people think, private search data is most likely to be misused by adversaries in litigation, not by law enforcement officials who are digging around for dirt.
To be sure, the greatest amount of harm can flow from government snooping. But the likelihood that Google searches will be subpoenaed in civil or domestic law cases is far greater. It’s an everyday occurrence for Google, Yahoo! and every ISP in the country.
Because the wheels of justice turn slowly, it can, more often than not, take at least 18 months for a lawsuit to reach the point where subpoenas are issued. Under Google’s new policy, those subpoenas will likely turn up…not much, or certainly less data than has been the case. So, fewer people might suffer the indignation of having opposing litigants paw through their most private thoughts, expressed in search format, while hunting for damaging information.
Cynthia Brumfield at 8:53 AM|Comments(0)
Blogs We Read
