Big Brother Google

Big Brother Google: Cyber Surveillance for personalised results?

28th October 2010, EdinburghKaren Blakeman, RBA Information Services

This presentation is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License

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This is me

Email: [email protected]

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mailto:[email protected]

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http://www.rba.co.uk/wordpress/

http://twitter.com/karenblakeman

http://www.facebook.com/karenblakeman

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Themes for this session

• The information about you that Google (and other search engines and web sites) collect while you browse

• Impact this has on search results and privacy

• What could possibly go wrong

• Can you control what is gathered and how?

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Google is used as the main example because it is one of the most transparent in allowing you to check what information it gathers and holds on you. But it often tells you after the event and it doesn’t tell you everything.

Google are the good guys – sort of. What Google can do, other less scrupulous or criminal sites can do just as easily (and more!)


For the purposes of accurate research for thispresentation I enabled Google’s web search history, suspended my usual advert and cookie management, and disabled my browser ad blocking plugins.

The ads drove me mad and my Google search results began to go all over the place.

It was a ghastly experience!!


Where are you?

• IP address location (not mobile geo-location)

• Sites present you with what they think is the relevant country version e.g. google.co.uk– “local” content is given priority and more emphasis

– access to some sites and information blocked to those outside of local “region/area” e.g. US, UK

• Not always correct - try catching up with TV programmes in a UK Accor hotel using their broadband


Location information gone wrong!


Your browser, device, operating system...

• Panopticlick https://panopticlick.eff.org/


https://panopticlick.eff.org/

Learn How Google Works: in Gory Detail

• http://www.ppcblog.com/how-google-works/


Already out of date!!

• Is your web history on? Switched on for everyone by default

• Google adjusts search results according to past page views

• Stored in cookies so browser and machine specific

• See: Personalized Search for everyone http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/personalized-search-for-everyone.html

Google web history

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What have you “allowed” Google to collect?

• Do you have a Google account - gmail, maps, Docs ?

• Do you know which Google services and products you are using?

• Do you know if you have made that information private or left it public?– many of Google’s services and applications are public by default

• Check your dashboard– “What Google knows about you(1): check your dashboard”

• http://www.rba.co.uk/wordpress/2010/06/24/what-google-knows-about-you1-check-your-dashboard/

– sign in to your Google account

– http://www.google.com/dashboard


Google dashboard

• I use Google for business so make use of as many Google services as possible to promote my business

• I have several Google accounts for research purposes

• I research and experiment with new services and technologies

• Therefore my Google dashboards are horrendous, yours may not be as bad

• The following dashboard screenshots are not from my main business account – that has a lot more on it!


Google dashboard


Google dashboard


Used to purchase Google Adwords on 2 occasions

Google dashboard

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“Is this everything? In a nutshell, not yet.”

“There are other kinds of data that Google records when you use its services, but which are not associated with your Google Account. To protect your privacy, that data is intentionally kept separate from your Google Account and thus is not visible on this page. “

??

Before you go and make that coffee sign out of your Google account!


Google social search

• Included in your search results if you are signed in to your Google account - maybe


Google social search


Your social circle

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List of direct and secondary connections

Your social circle – social content


Check your ad preferences

• So you think you don’t have ad preferences?

• Check out http://www.google.com/ads/preferences/

• Do not have to be signed in to a Google account

• “Preferences” based on pages you view

• Information stored in cookies

– different browser, different machine = different cookies

• Ad preferences are used on any site with Google ads

• Sometimes extends to determining content

• You can remove and add categories, or opt out all together

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Ad preferences

??

Google ad preferences in action


Opt out of other ad networks

• Network Advertising Initiative http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp

• Browser specific, machine specific

• Opt out cookies life span of 5 years or until you delete them


What could possibly go wrong?

• Can totally mess up your search results

– Your Google results are about to get weirder

– http://www.rba.co.uk/wordpress/2009/12/17/your-google-results-are-about-to-get-weirder/

• Shared computer, someone uses your desktop computer while you’re making a coffee, confidential research

• What if Google - or whoever - were taken over by SeriouslyDodgyWebSite.com?

– do you know that has happened?

– changes in privacy policies and data use (not just when sold – Facebook repeatedly updates privacy “options”)

– privacy policies may disappear altogether

– what are they doing with your data and personal information?


Can you control it?

• Not entirely but damage limitation sometimes possible

• Decide whether or not having a web history is going to be a help or a hindrance

• If you have a Google account (or an account on Bing or Yahoo)– log out of it when you are not actively using it

– regularly check your dashboard and privacy settings

– delete “stuff” and clear histories if you don’t need them

• Check your ad preferences in Google and also consider using Network Advertising Initiative http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp

• Cookie management– if you delete all cookies periodically you will lose opt-out cookies

as well!


Reject all cookies?

• You won’t get very far on the internet without cookies

• Active management of cookies? Can be time consuming and may lose opt-out cookies


• Try and find out and become familiar with what information search tools and web sites are gathering and keeping

• Ad-blocking plug-ins for browsers such as Firefox or Chrome only mask what is going on

• Regularly check settings, preferences etc.

• And finally, apologies....

If you weren’t paranoid at the start, you certainly will be now!


Big Brother Google: Cyber Surveillance for personalised results?

28th October 2010, EdinburghKaren Blakeman, RBA Information Services

This presentation is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License

Postscript

• This video sums it up– “Don’t be evil?” (aka as the Google ice cream man)

– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ouof1OzhL8k


Big Brother Google

Technology

Transcript of Big Brother Google