Those of you have a Gmail, YouTube, or some other Google account can view what’s being stored about you by logging in then following the link below.
https://myaccount.google.com/privacy?pli=1#activitycontrols
You’ll likely see that Google is tracking:
- Places you’ve been
- Audio recordings of searches and other voice commands
- What you’ve searched for
- Videos you’ve watched and searched for
- Your contacts, calendars, and other information
The tracking information you’ll see is distinct from information stored in your browser; clearing history, cookies, and other information in your browser simply clears that information from your PC, not from Google or other companies’ servers.
I’ve known that tech companies like Facebook and Google track their users extensively but, for me, seeing the extent of this sometimes-revealing information about myself being kept outside my control is jarring and has made me more cautious about how I use the web.
Those that dismiss privacy advocates as paranoids need only look at a handful of recent news articles and reports to see how web tracking and lack of privacy lead to real repercussions for societies and individuals including arrests and censorship:
http://www.voanews.com/content/china-blocks-time-economist-websites/3277926.html
https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-net/2015/iran
https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-net/freedom-net-2015
Unlike, China, Iran, Russia and other countries, the US has certain legal and constitutional safeguards that ensure personal privacy. However, it would be naïve to assume, particularly given that our own National Security Agency likely collects more information related to personal communication than any institution in the world, that there is not and never will be unchecked and/or undetected abuse of this power in the US.
In public libraries, patron privacy is one way we can ensure that citizens are free to read, watch, or listen to what they choose without fear of repercussions from law enforcement or other government agencies or social censure from neighbors or others. We do not keep a trail of who checks out what beyond the previous borrower. We do not keep logs of who has used our library PCs or what they’ve looked at. We do not track what patrons have searched for in the PAC. We should all be proud that as other institutions collect more and more information about what you read, watch, and buy (that is what retail “discount” or “member” cards are for, of course), that JPL and most other public libraries continue to ensure that our patrons can read and watch in peace.