June 8th, 2006
Google Browser Sync – privacy kiss of death?
So, what’s this then, for all Mozilla users? From the horse’s mouth:
Google Browser Sync for Firefox is an extension that continuously synchronizes your browser settings – including bookmarks, history, persistent cookies, and saved passwords – across your computers
Mouth-watering as it may seem, do keep in mind that Google do what they will with your data. The following quote, taken from their privacy info-page, is interesting though:
You can choose to encrypt Google’s stored copies of your settings.
Does that mean that not even Google can eye your secret data?
As usual, read their privacy policy and remind yourself that sentences such as:
We offer some of our services in connection with other web sites. Personal information that you provide to those sites may be sent to Google in order to deliver the service. We process such information in accordance with this Policy. The affiliated sites may have different privacy practices and we encourage you to read their privacy policies.
..and what about:
This Privacy Policy applies to web sites and services that are owned and operated by Google. We do not exercise control over the sites displayed as search results or links from within our various services. These other sites may place their own cookies or other files on your computer, collect data or solicit personal information from you.
…also, interesting:
We may process personal information to provide our own services. In some cases, we may process personal information on behalf of and according to the instructions of a third party, such as our advertising partners.
Mmm, I lervs a bit of my life shared with third parties. I love parties. Or you could download MS Windows Vista beta 2 instead.
edit: there is now detailed info on the installation-process from Lifehacker.
June 8th, 2006 at 17:35
Nowhere does it say that Google is forwarding info to third parties. The privacy portion of the third party paragraph is just stating they aren’t responsible for sites not owned by Google, (duh??), but linked from them (ie from search results).
Seems perfectly reasonable to me. Also, from what I can tell their use of encryption is a public/private key which will make it impossible for them to unencrypt your files.
Of course, Vista likes to phone home to MSFT every day too, so what can you do…
June 8th, 2006 at 21:13
First: \”We offer some of our services in connection with other web sites.\”
This may very well mean that they forward info to third parties.
Second: \”In some cases, we may process personal information on behalf of and according to the instructions of a third party, such as our advertising partners.\”
This means they are using \”personal information on behalf of and according to the instructions of a third party\”.
As it is unclear to which \”third paragraphy\” you are referring, I hereby guess it\’s the one starting with \”This Privacy Policy\”; Google are hereby saying they actually don\’t care much what their partners do to collect your data, or, indeed, do with it.
I hope their level of encryption leaves everybody (including the US government, even though I think this, sadly, is not the case) other than the submitting user out of the data, but I\’d like to see more info on this before I collect my thoughts further on the subject. A Google PGP-server would no doubt serve evil causes.
Just kidding. [/tinfoil hat]
I\’m guessing groups such as EFF and companies as Winternals will soon enough give their pennies\’ worth on this subject.