I have been sick the past few days and my mind has had the time to idle away, well, just thinking. Browsing around the internet many of you may see, as I do, the many sites that are using the ‘Google Analytics’ tool by none other than Google to track the statistics of their websites. This in itself is pretty harmless generally speaking, but using the analytics tools Google would have the ability to track your visitor’s from site to site, browsing patterns and what not. I’m not familiar with their privacy policies and I don’t think its in Google’s interests to sabotage their clients, but it is just scary knowing the power they have. Even more scary is the fact that its completely free, and at any given moment it could be switched off, leaving businesses without the necessary marketing tools they have been enjoying up to this point.

Then I thought about GMail, but more specifically the ‘Google Apps’ offering, which I now host the mail for my own domain (ddj.co.za) as well as phpusers.co.za, also free services, with no guarantees from Google, just leaves me feeling slightly insecure. I would almost feel more comfortable paying, if I wasn’t such a cheap skate :]

The thing that really bothers me about this is, not really the reliance on the servers as much, but just the information that these companies have about me. Google has all my mail, highly personal information (banking statements etc) and Facebook knows everything about me, and all the people I know, and all the people they know. Am I being watched, maybe if I was someone more important :]

All I know is, if I meet people that work for Google or Facebook I will surely be nice to them, or my mail, money and god knows what else will be at their mercy :]

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