Any plugin to block Google's spying?

[Todd and Margo Chester]

Hi All,

Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?

Many thanks,
-T

[Dempsey]

Not a plug-in, but I use DuckDuckGo (https://duckduckgo.com/) instead of
Google.

Click the pull-down menu of the search engine list (top right) click on
Manage Search Engines and then click on Get More Search Engines. Enter
Duck in the search field and select the one you want.

I use DuckDuckGo (HTTPS / SSL)

[Todd and Margo Chester]

Thank you!

I originally made this post after Google Maps asked me if it could
keep an address I was looking up mileage to.

-T

[Vic Moz Garcia]

Sure, add this line to your host file:

127.0.0.1 google.com

[Thai Guy]

--->

There is a great add-on called Ghostery. It will let you selectively
turn on/off any tracker or other spying from any web site.

[David Baker]

There is also DoNotTrackPlus 2.0.9 extension

[Anthony Papillion]

On Wed, Mar 21, 2012 at 4:25 PM, Todd and Margo Chester
<ToddMarg...@invalid.invalid> wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
> any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?

Someone suggested DuckDuckGo and it's pretty good. But sometimes it
seems to be lacking on some of the results it returns. You might also
want to try www.startpage.com. It's a privacy focused search engine
that will allow you to search Google by proxy so your computer never
touches the Google site. I'm not sure how it handles tracking cookies
but I believe I read that they are not passed on to you.

HTH,
Anthony

[Todd and Margo Chester]

I still want to use Google!

[Todd and Margo Chester]

Cool. Thank you!

[Todd and Margo Chester]

Thank you!

[Todd and Margo Chester]

Thank you!

[Cy Burnot]

Dempsey has written on 3/21/2012 6:09 PM:

That plus getting rid of your Google account and all their stuff.

I think that "spy" is the wrong word. Do you consider that your
supermarket is spying on you when it collects data on your shopping habits?

[Todd and Margo Chester]

On 03/21/2012 04:49 PM, Cy Burnot wrote:
> Do you consider that your
> supermarket is spying on you when it collects data on your shopping habits?

That would be Scholaries out here with there swipers for a tiny
discount. Oh we are not spying on you. We just need to know
who you are so we can apply the discount. I go elsewhere and
have let them know why.

[Ken Springer]

Thai Guy mentioned Ghostery.

For awhile, I ran both plugins, and Ghostery always found the same ones
as DoNotTrackPlus, plus a couple more.

I've deleted DoNotTrackPlus.

--
Ken

Mac OS X 10.6.8
Firefox 10.0.2
Thunderbird 10.0.2
LibreOffice 3.5.0 rc3

[Ken Springer]

Start Page is provided by Ixquick, and there's another search engine
page for that.

[Ken Springer]

On 3/21/12 3:25 PM, Todd and Margo Chester wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
> any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?

As I currently understand it, Google only tracks you if you login to
your Google account.

[Greywolf]

On 21/03/2012 8:26 PM, Ken Springer wrote:
> On 3/21/12 3:25 PM, Todd and Margo Chester wrote:
>> Hi All,
>>
>> Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
>> any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?
>
> As I currently understand it, Google only tracks you if you login to
> your Google account.
>
>

Look here for some help:

http://howto.wired.com/wiki/Hide_From_Google

HTH,
Wolf K.

[Vic Moz Garcia]

Then, no matter what you do, they will spy on you.
Unless you masquerade behind multiple proxies and so on.

[The Real Bev]

DNTP says it's blocked over 28,000 attempts to track me, most by google
analytics. No idea if it's true or not, of course...


--
Cheers, Bev
=====================================
Snowmen fall from Heaven unassembled.

[The Real Bev]

On 03/21/2012 04:49 PM, Cy Burnot wrote:

> Dempsey has written on 3/21/2012 6:09 PM:
>> On 21/03/2012 15:25, Todd and Margo Chester wrote:
>>> Hi All,
>>>
>>> Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
>>> any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?
>>>
>>> Many thanks,
>>> -T
>> Not a plug-in, but I use DuckDuckGo (https://duckduckgo.com/) instead of
>> Google.
>>
>> Click the pull-down menu of the search engine list (top right) click on
>> Manage Search Engines and then click on Get More Search Engines. Enter
>> Duck in the search field and select the one you want.
>>
>> I use DuckDuckGo (HTTPS / SSL)
>
> That plus getting rid of your Google account and all their stuff.

Picasa is useful, and to get unlimited photo storage you have to have a
google+ account. Gmail is handy and their spam filters are excellent.
Since any info they have on me is already public in one way or another,
I don't really worry about it. I believe any ISP or mail provider can
snoop in my account, so there's no point in worrying about that either.

> I think that "spy" is the wrong word. Do you consider that your
> supermarket is spying on you when it collects data on your shopping habits?

Yes, but they pay me for the privilege. I believe since I do most of my
shopping at yard sales, information on my shopping habits isn't worth
collecting.

--
Cheers, Bev
O_________________________________________________O
"John Wayne toilet paper -- It's rough, it's tough,
and it don't take no crap from nobody."

[Christoph Schmees]

unfortunately it is not sufficient to avoid google actively if
you want to prevent tracking. Very many webistes employ goolge
services such as google-syndication or google-analytics. By this,
google can track you still and does it. By means of cookies you
can be re-identified as being you. Thus you dossier at google
grows while you surf. :-(
To prevent that, you have to employ a bunch of measeures: Never
use goolge actively, by no means googlemail or another account;
NoScript (and mark the above mentioned services "untrusted"),
Ghostery, CookieCuller, and possibly RequestPolicy.

Christoph

--
email:
nurfuerspam -> gmx
de -> net

[Christoph Schmees]

Am 22.03.2012 01:26, schrieb Ken Springer:
> On 3/21/12 3:25 PM, Todd and Margo Chester wrote:
>> Hi All,
>>
>> Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
>> any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?
>
> As I currently understand it, Google only tracks you if you login
> to your Google account.
>

no, alas not true. See my other entry.

[Keith Nuttle]

I thought the Firefox function Do not track incorporated the do not
track into Firefox. Options Privacy (1st line)

Google is everywhere as other websites use Google to do their tracking,
so you can not avoid Google tracking by avoiding Google.com

[Christoph Schmees]

Am 22.03.2012 14:00, schrieb Keith Nuttle:
> On 3/22/2012 4:26 AM, Christoph Schmees wrote:
>> Am 22.03.2012 01:26, schrieb Ken Springer:
>>> On 3/21/12 3:25 PM, Todd and Margo Chester wrote:
>>>> Hi All,
>>>>
>>>> Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
>>>> any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?
>>>
>>> As I currently understand it, Google only tracks you if you login
>>> to your Google account.
>>>
>>
>> no, alas not true. See my other entry.
>>
>> Christoph
>>
>
> I thought the Firefox function Do not track incorporated the do
> not track into Firefox. Options Privacy (1st line)

and what do you dream at night? :-)
<http://www.h-online.com/security/news/item/Google-found-evading-Safari-s-privacy-controls-1436587.html>

and
<http://www.h-online.com/security/news/item/Google-also-bypassed-cookie-settings-in-Internet-Explorer-1438781.html>


Google is nothing else than a criminal data collector. And for
that purpose they use *every* and *any* means they can get hold
of - including candestinely circumventing user's privacy
settings. If you don't want to be tracked by big google you have
to fight hard and employ blunt measures.

[Ken Springer]

I'd read that article before, and not much new for me. Most of those
recommendations I have always done.

Scroogle.com is no more. Ixquick and it's relative Start Page search
locations also do not track.

I've a number of anti-tracking type add-ons installed in Firefox here.

And, of course, don't use the cloud any more than you have to.

[Cy Burnot]

The Real Bev has written on 3/21/2012 10:53 PM:

> On 03/21/2012 04:49 PM, Cy Burnot wrote:

<snip>

>> I think that "spy" is the wrong word. Do you consider that your
>> supermarket is spying on you when it collects data on your shopping habits?
>
> Yes, but they pay me for the privilege.

Enough to make it worthwhile?

> I believe since I do most of my
> shopping at yard sales, information on my shopping habits isn't worth
> collecting.

You food-shop at yard sales? Really??? :-)

[Ron Hunter]

While there is no doubt that Google collects data like some hoarders
collect EVERYTHING, I suspect they make about as much use of their
collections as those hoarders. Just what are they going to do with the
information out my surfing habits? Sure, I make an effort (TACO/Abine)
to prevent tracking, but I am still waiting for anyone to explain just
what harm it might do if they find out I leave their site and go to, say
Alaskan webcams, or Fanfiction.net. Sure, it's annoying, and somewhat
of dubious ethics, but unless someone can show my a real, documented
threat to my health, wealth, or safety, I can't get too upset over it.

[Christoph Schmees]

just one possible scenario: Did you read "1984" by George Orwell
or see one of the films made of it? That could give you an idea.

[Christian Riechers]

On 03/22/2012 08:52 PM, Ron Hunter wrote:
> While there is no doubt that Google collects data like some hoarders
> collect EVERYTHING, I suspect they make about as much use of their
> collections as those hoarders. Just what are they going to do with the
> information out my surfing habits? Sure, I make an effort (TACO/Abine)
> to prevent tracking, but I am still waiting for anyone to explain just
> what harm it might do if they find out I leave their site and go to, say
> Alaskan webcams, or Fanfiction.net. Sure, it's annoying, and somewhat
> of dubious ethics, but unless someone can show my a real, documented
> threat to my health, wealth, or safety, I can't get too upset over it.
>

This may have been posted here before, but it's the answer to your question.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&v=OFdsGBeimgE
Follow-up set to mozilla.general.

--
Christian

[»Q«]

On Thu, 22 Mar 2012 09:00:00 -0400
Keith Nuttle <keith_...@sbcglobal.net> wrote:

> I thought the Firefox function Do not track incorporated the do not
> track into Firefox. Options Privacy (1st line)

The built-in "Do Not Track" option merely sends a notice to websites
you visit letting them know that you don't want to be tracked by third
parties. I don't know whether Google honors those wishes. Mozilla's
page about DNT merely says that some sites honor them, without saying
which. <http://dnt.mozilla.org/>

[croy]

On Wed, 21 Mar 2012 19:49:18 -0400, Cy Burnot
<cy.b...@invalid.com> wrote:


>I think that "spy" is the wrong word. Do you consider that your
>supermarket is spying on you when it collects data on your shopping habits?

How could I not?

--
tbl

[Ron Hunter]

Yes, I read it, long before the date, and saw nothing in it to make me
worry about Google collecting data.

[The Real Bev]

On 03/22/2012 11:05 AM, Cy Burnot wrote:

> The Real Bev has written on 3/21/2012 10:53 PM:
>> On 03/21/2012 04:49 PM, Cy Burnot wrote:
>
> <snip>
>
>>> I think that "spy" is the wrong word. Do you consider that your
>>> supermarket is spying on you when it collects data on your shopping habits?
>>
>> Yes, but they pay me for the privilege.
>
> Enough to make it worthwhile?

It's almost like bending over to pick up a nickel. Exercise that
actually pays you to do it! Every once in a while I notice that somebody
owes me $100 or so. Free money.

>> I believe since I do most of my
>> shopping at yard sales, information on my shopping habits isn't worth
>> collecting.
>
> You food-shop at yard sales? Really??? :-)

Rarely, but there used to be a church bake sale that was REALLY good. I
think the church changed hands, though. Back when grocery stores would
triple coupons people would buy LOTS of stuff and then sell it at a
profit at their yard sales.

Your value system gets really mucked up, though. When you can buy a
bran muffin and a down ski jacket for the same price, things get
confusing. Or skis or a hamburger for $5.


--
Ch rs,
B v
=======================================
My f ck ng k yb rd h s l st ts v w ls.

[Greywolf]

Supermarkets have always collected data, but in the past your shopping
was lost in the crowd. I don't think linking it to you personally helps
them that much. The aggregate stats about shopping habits in store A
(downtown) vs store B (uptown) are what matters, and they know that
already. That's why different stores of the same chain offer different
selections.

Wolf K.

[EE]

On 2012-03-21 14:25, Todd and Margo Chester wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> Now that Google is wanting to spy on us prodigiously, does
> any one know of a plugin that will blanket block them?
>

> Many thanks,
> -T

No plugin, but there is an extension called Redirect Cleaner that can
remove the redirects from the links in the results pages. I also
blocked Google from using Javascript and cookies.

[EE]

You can use Start Page, which is enhanced by Google, but does not
collect information about you.