Actually, Google probably knows more about you than you think.
Of course, Facebook knows a lot about you, such as your facial features, what concerts you've attended, and what you've had for breakfast every Saturday for the past five years. But according to Seth Stephens Davidwitz, a former Google data scientist, Facebook has only a fraction of Google's information.
Why? Well, due to you want people to like it and comment on it, you're more likely to only share public information with Facebook. For instance, if you have a terrible rash, you may not use this information to update your FB status, but you will definitely talk to Google the moment you enter "home remedies for buttock rash."
Yes, it's a very popular search term. It's getting worse. Take a look at the Fast Company research report, which details the most embarrassing hot search terms in each state.
Every frustrating question you ask, and everything you may search for, buy, or subscribe to with Google search engines, will be filed into the consumer profile. After all, Google is a data company that has to make money by providing advertisers with in-depth information about their target consumers.
When you search for "DIY summer hair" and receive an ad for hair gel "randomly" for the first time - you may think it's just a strange coincidence. But the reality is that Google is in action.
However, a lot of people aren't intimidated by Google. After all, it makes your life easier when you try to find direction on Google maps and it already knows where you are, or when you receive deals about what you really want to buy.
But not everyone has that feeling. You should have privacy when you need it. That's why you need to know how to use Google wisely and adjust your privacy settings to suit you.
A VPN professor said, "it's more important than ever for users to realize that they need to take proactive measures to protect their privacy, because Internet giants like Google and Facebook certainly won't."
He suggested the following four measures:
Read privacy disclosure
Although they are long, but don't simply "agree" to the terms of use without reading what you agree to. In addition, policies may change, so read the update to make sure you don't agree with what you're not satisfied with.
Adjust your Google settings
Visit Google account settings, turn off location history, and web and app activity, and ask Google to stop collecting your data.
It's a step that most people forget, and given the time we spend on mobile phones, it's absolutely necessary to protect privacy. Go to phone and/or tablet settings to turn off location sharing. This will prevent your device from sharing data about your location with Google Apps:
- For IOS: go to: Settings > Privacy > location services and select the application you want to disable
- For Android: (may vary from device manufacturer)
Additional protective measures
Your physical location can be identified by other methods, such as through the HTML5 API and by looking at IP addresses, even if location services such as GPS are not available. So if you're worried about this, you can do this:
- In order to block your IP address, you can use VPN, such as TikVPN. VPN is a service that allows you to connect through applications on your computer, tablet or smartphone.
- In order to prevent HTML5 from disclosing your location to the website, you can disable location sharing in your browser or use a browser extension that spoofs your HTML5 location.
Finally, you can decide how much information you want to give Google. So use your power wisely.