Microsoft to ‘anonymise’ cookies
p2pnet news | freedom:- With news that Google is reducing the amount of time it hangs on to user information from 30 to two years (not that it’ll make a blind bit of difference), Bill and the Boyz say they’re going to do much the same, not that it’ll make a blind bit of difference.
Microsoft has “updated” it’s privacy policy in a move which allow its customers to “decline advertisements tailored to their web surfing habits,” says vnunet.
It’ll also “anonymise” cookies after 18 months.
“Microsoft said it was responding to public concern over the recent consolidation of the online ad industry as well as stepped-up interest from government regulators in its call for a comprehensive rather than piecemeal approach to privacy,” says Reuters.
Google, et al, claim their ability to ferret around inside users’ computers merely helps them to improve services by delivering more and more specifically targeted advertisements
However, trusting Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, etc, clearly isn’t a good idea, and people have been worried about privacy since day one.
The US Federal Trade Commission is,”currently investigating claims that Google’s planned $3.1bn (£1.5bn) purchase of DoubleClick gives it access to too much information about internet users’ searching and browsing habits,” says vnunet.
“Microsoft plans to store customer search data separately from data tied to people, e-mail addresses or phone numbers and take steps to assure no unauthorized correlation of these types of data can be made,” says Reuters. “It also will permanently remove ‘cookie’ user identification data, Web addresses or other identifiers.”
Google and Microsoft both, “face scrutiny from U.S. and European regulators over their plans to merge with major players in the online advertising industry,” says Reuters.
“Google is beginning to lose its usefullness to me. It is so crowded with ads that I don’t want and have to weed through to find the material, buried far in the back of the search, that I do want that the pain to use it is rapidly overcoming it’s benefits,” says a p2pnet Reader’s Write, adding:
“I am beginning to long for a search engine that gives me what I ask for and not sideline guess at what I might be interested in buying. If I was interested in buying, I wouldn’t be searching for data on the net; I’d be in a bookstore or related store that had what I was interested in.”
Also See:
30 to two years – Google crumbles its cookies, July 17, 2007
Reuters – Microsoft curtails how long it stores Web searches, July 22, 2007
vnunet – Microsoft lays down privacy challenge to Google, July 23, 2007
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