Do you like to use all of Google’s free services? Gmail, Youtube, Maps, Search and many others? Most of us do, but did you know that every time that you use one of these services, Google captures a bit more information about you?
You get to have free access to these services, but there is a price to pay! And that price is the loss of privacy.
You may wonder why Google would care about where you go, or what you search for or who you are emailing, but consider this, all of that information helps Google deliver ads. Advertisers pay Google to deliver their ads to to the people that most likely will want what the advertiser is selling. By collecting so much info on the people that use Google services the search giant can build very accurate insights into consumer behaviors and because of that they can promise advertisers that their ads will reach the intended audience! And that promise of accurate delivery is why Google can charge high prices for ad placement!
There are a number of methods that Google uses to gather info about you and your habits. Some of which you voluntarily give up when you sign up for services such as Gmail and Youtube. Other bits come from your phone and your web browsers.
So wouldn’t it be nice to see what Google knows about you? I thought so. Take the time to click through the following links!
1. History – Everything that you ever searched for…
2. Ads – Google shows you ads based on this information it has about your interests.
3. Location History – Have you got location services turned on in your phone? If so this will surprise you!
4. Takeout – Maybe you’d like to export what they know about you to a file on your computer.
5. Dashboard – This one is fascinating! All the Google services that you are using in one place!
6. YouTube search history – Yep, you guessed it. If you do any searches on YouTube they are stored here.
7. Permissions – Finally, click on this one to see what apps on your phone and computer have permission to access the data that Google has on you!
Here is the good news, once you visit these links, look for the links to tell Google to stop collecting that data and also to delete what they already have collected.
Not every one of the above links will have that ability, so look around carefully. And who knows, there may be more places/services that Google is using to learn about you!
