I am far from someone who is paranoid about privacy and what information is being tracked about me. As a part-time soldier I have grown used to knowing that I am under full-time scrutiny. It was with mixed feelings today though, when I found a bit larger of the role google takes in recording my daily undertakings. I was listening to the November 11th episode of the #2600 hosted podcast "Off the Hook" and the discussion was surrounding privacy and the recent legislation in the UK around logging what URL's web users are browsing to. This topic led to a discussion that Google logs not only your timeline, of where and when you have been, but also records and saves every utterance you make to "Ok Google". I will give google props for making this information something we can delete and turn off, but how many of us know its out there! How many of really think about things like this? We just blindly consume the tech that makes things easier for us. Google tracks these things, as well as our searches not so much to spy on us, but to improve our experience. Recording audio clips we say to it to improve voice recognition, tracking prior searches to return more relevant information. Some google search auto completes are pretty darn spooky with their accuracy, but how much is too much? How can this be used against me? Knowledge is power, and anyone with the right knowledge can gain access. I know that I have no expectation of privacy. I live in a connected world, and everything I do is recorded somewhere for some reason. My only hope is that like google, someone gives me the options, to determine what is kept, and what is discarded.
Google Timeline
www.google.com/maps/timeline
Google Voice and Audio Activity
https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/6030020?hl=en
Yours in Security,
Justin
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