posted April 21, 2005 01:45 PM            

Of course we all know how secure our computers are against worms, viruses, tracking cookies etc. I use AdAware several times a day and it ALWAYS finds 15-50 tracking cookies and registry entries/files for me to delete.

I seldom use Google search or Google period, but this is reason enough for me to avoid them altogether. I don't need anyone proposing to keep track of every site I visit on the Internet...or the ads they will direct to my email address...have plenty of that already.

Google Launches Personal History Feature By MICHAEL LIEDTKE, AP Business Writer
Wed Apr 20, 9:25 PM ET

Google Inc. is experimenting with a new feature that enables the users of its online search engine to see all of their past search requests and results, creating a computer peephole that could prove as embarrassing as it is helpful.

Activating Google's "My Search History" service, unveiled Wednesday afternoon at http://labs.google.com, requires users to create a personal login with a password. Users of Google's e-mail, discussion groups and answer services can simply use their existing log-ins.

The service allows users to decide if they want Google to automatically recognize them without having to log in each time they use the same computer. Those who prefer to log in on each visit can use a link that will appear in the right-hand corner of Google's home page.

Whenever a user is logged in, Google will provide a detailed look at all their past search activity. The service also includes a "pause" feature that prevents it from being displayed in the index.

Users will be able to pinpoint a search conducted on a particular day, using a calendar that's displayed on the history page. The service sometimes will point out a past search result related to a new search request.

Google is hoping the service becomes so valuable that people will use its search engine even more frequently than they already do, giving the company more opportunities to display text-based ads that boost its profits.

"We think there is some value in providing people with visibility into their past activity on Google," said Marissa Mayer, the company's director of consumer Web products.

But privacy rights expert Pam Dixon is worried the service will make it easier for mischief makers, snoops and perhaps even the government to get their hands on a user's entire search history.

"It's really a bad idea," said Dixon, executive director of the World Privacy Forum. "If you need to keep track of your past searches, I recommend using a notebook. It would be a lot more private and a lot less risky."

Mountain View-based Google believes the service has adequately addressed privacy concerns, although Mayer conceded people who share a computer might not want to use the service. "This isn't for someone who is particularly sloppy about signing in and signing off," she said. "You have to have very good computer hygiene to use this."

Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news), Ask Jeeves Inc. and A9.com, a search engine owned by Amazon.com Inc., offer a feature that provides users with a limited look at past search activity. Google's software for searching computer hard drives, introduced last fall, also provides a snapshot of past Web searches.

But Google promises its latest feature will dig deeper than its rivals or even its own desktop search product.

The online service is designed to store years of each individual's search activity, although users can remove selected links from their personal archive at any time.

Because the history feature requires an individual login, it could help Google better understand each user so it can customize its results to reflect a person's specific interests, said industry analyst Charlene Li of Forrester Research.

posted April 21, 2005 03:54 PM              

...if you sign up for them to do so.

posted April 21, 2005 07:21 PM            

"How do I delete the list of my previous Google searches?"

If you're referring to the drop-down list of search queries you've typed in the past, there are three places you can delete it: the Google search box, the Google Toolbar, or your browser. We've included instructions for all three methods below.
http://www.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=16268&ctx=<?cs%20var:%20CGI.detectedLang%20?>:contact1

posted April 21, 2005 08:03 PM              

quote:

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The search history that displays in the search box on the Google homepage is stored by your browser, not by Google

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posted April 22, 2005 05:39 PM              

quote:

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Like your Google search box history, the search history that displays in the address bar on the Google homepage is stored by your browser, not by Google.

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the only one it doesnt specify is the google toolbar...but dont you have to download it and install that though?

posted April 22, 2005 06:01 PM            

I use Adaware and sometimes Spysweeper(to dig deeper down into it) for my PC and Norton Anti-virus for the real nasty crap!

And if I really want to get into a whole big thing about it, I write a whole GWScan program and wipe out my whole C:/drive clean and reprogram the oringinal files back into the hard drive, but that can be risky considering that some of my MP3 files are DRM protected, sometimes Microsoft cuts me a break and issues me a new registry key for them, but not always.

posted April 22, 2005 06:37 PM            

What is this world coming to?!

posted April 22, 2005 10:17 PM              

For instance, there was a guy here locally that was charged with child molestation who's internet history handed over to the courts. His service provider was AOL.

So obviously they keep records on each account. spying.

posted April 22, 2005 11:06 PM            

Believe me, I'm living proof!