I was out and about just now, and heard something disturbing on NPR's Morning Edition, and no, I don't mean the voice of the recently-fired Bob Edwards.¹

In a piece on search engines, Edwards interviewed some whiny-voiced fellow who had connections to the "search" industry. Aside from the interviewee's horrible grammar (typified by his constant reference solely to "search" without saying "search engines" or the like; it's comparable to saying "blog will be the future of the internet" instead of saying that "blogging will be the future of the internet") the man blathered happily about a disturbing view of what the search engine providers want.

What they want, he explained (and Edwards elaborated on) is to be able to get more data and get more comprehensive data about the searches run. Here's the rub: They want to make it personal. This engineer spoke approvingly of the need for companies to be able to match a pattern of searching activity over time, so that "the most relevant results" can be provided. In other words, they wish to create a user-specific profile that knows what I've looked for in the past.

The example given was to be able to discern what I'm looking for when I punch "china" into say Google. Currently, I'd have to pick between sites regarding a very large country in the Pacific Rim, or something that belongs on a dinner table. What the next-generation search engine types want is to be able to know in advance, based on past activity, whether I'm looking for info on the country or on the plates.

Edwards noted that privacy advocates objected to this, but it was also pointed out that generally technology advances anyways. The repellent individual who Edwards was speaking to happily pointed out that there were "billions" in revenue for this sort of activity, and gave me the impression that this was only a matter of time.

I find unacceptable the notion that Google will keep track of my searching habits on a personal level. A detailed list of one's WWW searches is not something that should be kept, even by the Federal government. I do not trust someone simply because they're from Silicon Valley. In fact, when you take into consideration Oracle's Larry Ellison, my trust in them plummets lower than the government.²

Also mentioned was Google's upcoming e-mail system that mines the content of your messages in order to provide targeted advertising. It'll be a cold day in Camp X-Ray before I use that system. I don't usually march with the Internet privacy advocates, but both of these things go too far. I miss the Internet as it used to be.

The quotes and attribution are not offered as wholly accurate statements; if I can get the piece from NPR's RealAudio section, I'll link it and also correct this article. ¹ Enh, I'll miss Bob Edwards. For better or for worse, he's been weaving his way in and out of my morning routine since 1991 or so.

² Ellison has, for the last five to ten years, been trying to drum up support for a national identification card. He swears that it leads to increased public safety and so forth---yadda yadda---but usually doesn't seem to mention that, "Oh by the way, we can implement this solution with our products..." Ellison's willingness to invade on what are probably Constitutional grounds solely to make a buck is a) irritating and b) quite troubling.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 09:22 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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