We know Google knows more about our neighbors than we know about ourselves — but when hard numbers are presented against Google — we begin to fill its pricking chill with no escape hatch available:

Just how closely is Google (GOOG) watching you? A new report by three UC Berkeley graduate students indicates that of 400,000 sample Web domains, the company has a Google tracker–either Google Analytics, AdSense, DoubleClick, Google Widgets, or FriendConnect–on 88 percent of them. 88 percent. Google also has trackers on 92 of the 100 most popular Web sites.

Does Google have an information monopoly?

Is Google out of control because of everything it embeds and controls on the internet?

How much more of our lives do we plan to give away for free to Google and its partners?

Is there a price on privacy?

Do you know Google is tracking you while you read this page?

5 Comments

  1. David Boles – New York City – David Boles was born in Nebraska and holds an MFA from the Oscar Hammerstein II Center for Theatre Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York. He is an author, dramatist, editor, publisher, and teacher who writes across the live stage, print, radio, television, film, and the web. With more than 50 books in print, David continues to write 2MM words a year and has authored over 25K articles. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, the Authors Guild, and PEN America, and founded The United Stage advocacy platform on the principle that playwrights have a duty to direct their own work. Read the Prairie Voice Archive at Boles.com | Buy his books at David Boles Books Writing & Publishing at BolesBooks.com | Study with Script Professor at ScriptProfessor.com | Touch American Sign Language mastery at Hardcore ASL at HardcoreASL.com | Explore the Human Meme podcast at HumanMeme.com | Train with Boles Bells at BolesBells.com.
    Gordon Davidescu says:

    Google does seem to have an information monopoly – one which we have willingly provided it over the last 11+ years. The question is, of course – what are their plans for this information? Is it for our betterment? 🙂

  2. Sounds like a monopoly to me!
    It’s a bit frightening to think that all of my information is being spied on!
    It seems true privacy is a thing of the past. In order to have privacy we would have to disconnect from the internet altogether and work offline. That is the price we would be paying for our privacy.

  3. David Boles – New York City – David Boles was born in Nebraska and holds an MFA from the Oscar Hammerstein II Center for Theatre Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York. He is an author, dramatist, editor, publisher, and teacher who writes across the live stage, print, radio, television, film, and the web. With more than 50 books in print, David continues to write 2MM words a year and has authored over 25K articles. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, the Authors Guild, and PEN America, and founded The United Stage advocacy platform on the principle that playwrights have a duty to direct their own work. Read the Prairie Voice Archive at Boles.com | Buy his books at David Boles Books Writing & Publishing at BolesBooks.com | Study with Script Professor at ScriptProfessor.com | Touch American Sign Language mastery at Hardcore ASL at HardcoreASL.com | Explore the Human Meme podcast at HumanMeme.com | Train with Boles Bells at BolesBells.com.
    David W. Boles says:

    Gordon —
    Even if Google’s intentions are good and honorable — should they still have all that information stored on us? If so, for what future use? Should they be restricted in profiling all those years to form the virtual us?

  4. David Boles – New York City – David Boles was born in Nebraska and holds an MFA from the Oscar Hammerstein II Center for Theatre Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York. He is an author, dramatist, editor, publisher, and teacher who writes across the live stage, print, radio, television, film, and the web. With more than 50 books in print, David continues to write 2MM words a year and has authored over 25K articles. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, the Authors Guild, and PEN America, and founded The United Stage advocacy platform on the principle that playwrights have a duty to direct their own work. Read the Prairie Voice Archive at Boles.com | Buy his books at David Boles Books Writing & Publishing at BolesBooks.com | Study with Script Professor at ScriptProfessor.com | Touch American Sign Language mastery at Hardcore ASL at HardcoreASL.com | Explore the Human Meme podcast at HumanMeme.com | Train with Boles Bells at BolesBells.com.
    David W. Boles says:

    I agree, Kimberley, that if we want our internet privacy we have to leave the internet. Is that right, though? Why should we have to flee an information network to protect our private lives?

  5. Pingback: Curtains Make Good Neighbors and Bad Art « Boles Blogs

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