How Google pioneered the "surveillance capitalism" business model

[Eadwine Rose]

Ah well.. nobody cares about little me, least of all Google.

[JayM]

When it comes to big corporations like Google, Facebook, Microsoft,.... if you are not paying for it then you are the product.

Per the article we're not Google's product, we're their source of raw materials from which they make their product which is selling information about what we do whether on our computers or not.

[danielson]

@Eadwine Rose - i care about you!

Thing is, have been using Google services since the beginning.
Not easy not to and even then as JayM pointed out, there appears to be no way out.

[richb]

People visit this page and enable privacy settings.
https://myaccount.google.com/privacycheckup?pli=1

[Eadwine Rose]

I don't even want out.. I'm happy with being part of the googlefu

[JayM]

@Eadwine Rose - i care about you!

Thing is, have been using Google services since the beginning.
Not easy not to and even then as JayM pointed out, there appears to be no way out.

I didn't say that. Of course there is: run script and ad blockers in your browser, don't let your Android smartphone connect to the Internet or replace it with a "dumbphone", avoid visiting Google/Alphabet-owned websites like YouTube, patronize local brick-and-mortar stores rather than shopping online, don't buy any "Internet of things" devices. It's all about personal choices. It's like signing up to get one of those store or supermarket discount plastic cards: if you do and use it you may save a little money but in return they get to gather the data of what you've purchased, and exactly who bought it and where and when. Same if you use a credit or debit card instead of paying in cash. Don't feed the data collectors.

[richb]

@Eadwine Rose - i care about you!

Thing is, have been using Google services since the beginning.
Not easy not to and even then as JayM pointed out, there appears to be no way out.

I didn't say that. Of course there is: run script and ad blockers in your browser, don't let your Android smartphone connect to the Internet or replace it with a "dumbphone", avoid visiting Google/Alphabet-owned websites like YouTube, patronize local brick-and-mortar stores rather than shopping online, don't buy any "Internet of things" devices. It's all about personal choices. It's like signing up to get one of those store or supermarket discount plastic cards: if you do and use it you may save a little money but in return they get to gather the data of what you've purchased, and exactly who bought it and where and when. Same if you use a credit or debit card instead of paying in cash. Don't feed the data collectors.

I would consider that crippling my systems.

[zorzi]

IMO, it's really time to get rid of Google.

I do not use their services/products anymore. I deleted Android of my phone and replaced it with LineageOS or AOKP.

For an alternative to Google Maps, Open Street Map does the job.

[Eadwine Rose]

You know what would be crippling me? Aside from being already crippled

If I HAD to always pay using cash.

Going to the bank costs me way too much energy, as they are closing banks as we speak and I have to go all the way across town. For normal healthy people that's not an issue, for those on disability it's a different story.

Buying stuff.. I buy a LOT online, because I HAVE to. And I am glad that option is there. Nope I do not have a credit card, but a debit card is common ground here, and when from abroad I use paypal (GASP!!!) to pay for the stuff.

Trust me.. trade with me, see how well you get by when you are all alone without people helping you, and without all those online things. Not very well lemme tell ya.

[Adrian]

IMO, it's really time to get rid of Google.

I do not use their services/products anymore. I deleted Android of my phone and replaced it with LineageOS or AOKP.

For an alternative to Google Maps, Open Street Map does the job.

I'm a huge Google fan. I actually want only Google to have my info, instead of spreading my info think over other unreliable and less trustful companies and services I prefer that one company has my info.

Since I use an Android phone Google knows where I am anyway, if I were to disable location it would cripple my phone way too much, why give my location and map search info to any other company that I might not trust, both in technical capability -- whatever you can say Google has shown that they can secure their xxxxxxx -- and in business deals. At least being a big company is under scrutiny and has responsibility, spreading your info to small companies that can go bankrupt be acquired by I-don't-know-what company or are unreliable is not a better idea.

Whenever I see this threads with "X company sucks" I get angry because people get so presumptions. Not everybody has your preferences, not everybody worries about the same thing as you do, not everybody reaches your conclusion. The silent majority who happily uses Google products is not likely to be attracted by such threads, so you'll see some kind of opinions over-represented.

BTW, I want somebody to tell me what bad thing Google did with my info.

Go Google!