For those of us who have worked on the web, be it in design, programming, or in my own case, publishing, it’s no secret that Google has the world firmly within its grasp. Web sites that rank at the top of Yahoo or Microsoft searches receive no audience unless they do equally well in Google’s books. Yes indeed, the little engine that could, started by Stanford University students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, has come a long way since first incorporated nearly a decade ago.
But, has Google reached its limits? Is this the “pax Romana” of the most powerful entity ever to grace the world wide web?
Google became a powerhouse by implementing one key idea: make the web a popularity contest. How’d they do this? Quite simply, by ranking web sites by the number of “back links” they’d established with fellow webmasters. The most links connecting a site to the many other pages on the Internet, the more likely Google would determine it to be a reliable source and fine product. Thus, these sites ranked high, and largely still do.
However, in recent months Google, which is now based in California employing over 12,000, has undergone some serious personal reflection. Like a teen Prince ready to take over the world, Google is either being moulded for a life of serving the greater good, or perhaps a future marred by “what could have been”.
What we’re seeing now from Google is a crossroads with no clear right or wrong direction. Many challenges lie ahead, and there’s certainly no guarantee any of us will feel like following them to the promised land.
So, what could possibly tarnish Google’s glorious reputation?
Teen Princes rebel. They take power for granted, and sometimes they get burned for doing so. It’s been years since anyone legitimately threatened Google’s place in the world, and no real outside danger appears before them. There really is only one who could thrust Google from its throne, and that’s none other than Google itself.
How so?
In recent months, the company has become a security threat. That’s right, the most popular search engine in the world has been tracking all of our moves online, via the tiny little footprints we leave called “cookies”. These tracks are monitored by the big G for not one, five, or even ten years down the road, but potentially three decades, until sometime during 2038. (Source: theregister.co.uk)
Regardless, it means Google is keeping an eye on those using its search engine. And, with more and more people hitting the web each moment, it’s an ever-growing list of personal information.
News of such scandalous moves were first reported over a year ago, when security watchdogs at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, or EFF, discovered a handy new desktop search feature provided more than meets the eye. First unearthed in February of 2006, Google’s “Search Across Computers” feature gave users more than just a practical method of perusing their own systems. It also gave Google access to details on those searches, which were reportedly stored on the company’s servers. (Source: securityblog.itproportal.com)
Fast forward to 2007, and the mumblings of dissatisfaction have only grown. Recently, it has been the simple and incredibly common search of online web sites that have led to Google tracking, a discovery that has the Mountain View company in more trouble than ever before.
As expected, privacy advocates who vehemently oppose the exploitation of personal information are turning up the heat on Google. As a result, in recent weeks the company has decided to curtail much of its tracking, sliding cookie counters back from thirty years to just two. Unfortunately, the measure has a few notable exceptions and enough small print to completely avoid the appeasement of anyone interested in protecting their personal data online.
So, what makes the deal a raw one?
Granted, the expiration of cookies after two years is an improvement from the previous three decades. However, if a user is to visit Google ever again, say, if a teenage son takes over the computer while Dad is at work, then that two year period re-starts. A user must completely avoid Google for twenty-four full months before the cookie is permanently erased from their records.
What’s the meaning behind all of this?
Google veils its purposes nicely. The tracking of such cookies is done, “officially”, to ensure that the preferences of users are kept (‘til mid-life or later, it seems). However, in truth these records are etched so that the search engine can better craft its massive Adsense campaign, which collects millions of dollars for the sale of advertising data. It appears that concept has only been accelerated by the recent purchase of DoubleClick, a major agent in this sphere. (Source: business.guardian.co.uk)
If you’re keeping track, all of this sounds oddly familiar. It isn’t much unlike the negative opinion clouding Windows Vista and Microsoft, a year after the Windows Genuine Advantage was unleashed (stealthily tracking the legitimacy of programs on user computers). Although Microsoft has hardly been shaken from its lofty position in the software market, criticism of Vista and security concerns have made XP “rollbacks” a popular idea.
So, what could possibly happen to Google?
Although still a dominating force, Google is not safe atop the search engine food chain. As the threat of spyware, malware, and general web nuisances grow, any association with problematic security could lead to a slippery slope back down to reality, and the competition from Yahoo and Microsoft. Let’s remember one thing: in the world of the Internet, just about anything can happen overnight. It certainly didn’t take long for Google to get where it is today.
It’s time the most important company on the web grows up a little.
Tags: Technology Trends by brandon
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