Google Deleting Private Profiles

An anonymous reader writes "Google announced that it will no longer support private Google Profiles after July 31. The move comes as Google is rolling out its latest social experiment, Google+. Those who have already been admitted to Google+ will see their Google+ profiles replace their Google Profiles. At the moment the only information Google requires users to reveal is their name and gender."

Comments

Google+

[cgeys]

Google+ is even worse than Facebook on this regard. When you join Google+, your profile is already public to the whole internet and search engines. And because it's Google, they have already indexed it by then. There is no way to set it private before it's already public. Now they also want that people really make everything public in their search engine. Of course it makes business sense for Google, but is not good for users that want privacy. Google even uses good marketing language to soften the user. Such stuff never says "Yes", but it reads "oh that's okay". Dirty tricks.

Re:Google+

[Kjella]

I feel very good, have friends, work, hobbies and interest, and don't waste time on social networks trying to find new friends while leaving behind the old real ones.

Maybe your friends are just as odd as you then, nothing really wrong with that but the reason most of us feel the social pressure is because almost all my "old real" friends now are on Facebook. That's where they chatter and share pictures and make events and whatnot, it's not that they're purposely shutting you out but you're the special case. You're the one "being difficult", why can't you just get a profile just like everybody else? Sometimes they plain old forget that they have to tell me via a different means than everybody else. So I caved, my profile is on Facebook. And if everyone moved to Google+, I'd probably have to follow. If that hasn't happened to you, well then you're in the same group as my parents, they're not on Facebook, have no reason to join Facebook and good for them. It doesn't help everyone else who feel they have to either sign up or they'll drift apart from the friends they already have.

Re:Google+

[Anonymous Coward]

I feel very good, have friends, work, hobbies and interest, and don't waste time on social networks trying to find new friends while leaving behind the old real ones.

Maybe your friends are just as odd as you then

Things have finally come full circle. 15 years ago I was considered "odd" because all my friends, hobbies and interests were online. Hell, I even met my current partner that way. I've since changed, am older and wiser, and no longer maintain any online presence. I live in the real world where interactions are in person and convey an infinitude of subtle information exchanges of mood and expression that could never be expressed online.

So yeah, that's now considered "odd", is it? Perhaps in another 15 years the rest of the world will catch up.

Consciously opt out?

[improfane]

I never had a Google Profile and opted out of Buzz as soon as I could.

How do I opt out of Google+?

What even was Google Profile?

Google+ tracking cookie

[triclipse]

I have been noticing the new Google+ tracking cookie popping up across the web as well. (I blocked it with Ghostery.) Not sure what it does, perhaps someone could explain?

Re:Poor Liddle Microsoft Troll

[Anonymous Coward]

Read their privacy statement, because you sound like an idiot, they dont keep ip addresses for years on end. You alos dont have a profile just from having a Youtube account. It's sad how many idiot slashdotters fall for this MS/Facebook Privacy FUD. http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/12/facebook-admits-hiring-pr-firm-to-smear-google/

Mod parent up, cgeys is a paid Astroturfer.

[Anonymous Coward]

Mod parent up, cgeys is a paid Astroturfer. Read his comment history 90% have a vague pro MS or pro facebook remark in them. Several stories always get submitted like this with vague unsubstatiated "Google is the privacy devil" themes and out com one of the 2m+ UIDs like him to post the first comment. dave420, x**xy**y and all the rest.

http://news.slashdot.org/story/11/05/12/138229/Facebook-Admits-Hiring-PR-Firm-To-Smear-Google

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-admits-to-hiring-pr-firm-for-google-smear-campaign/48650

Re:Safety first.

[YttriumOxide]

I don't think giving your real name on the internet is a good idea, at all. Because of the special way Internet work, some criminal can collect a lot of information about you, and use that information against you. Where you live, what are you friends, what is the name of your childrens, his age,...

Hi, my name is Benjamin de Waal. My alias here is "yttriumoxide", but elsewhere I usually go by "YttriumOx" or similar.
I currently live in Hannover, Germany. Specifically, in the suburb called "Heideviertel". However I was born in Dunedin, New Zealand and have travelled rather extensively, including living in 5 countries so far and visiting somewhere in the region of 40 (I have a list somewhere, but not with me right now).
I have a lot of friends all over the world, on account of having lived in many different places.
My wife's name is Steffi (Stefanie) and my 3 month old daughter is Sam (Samantha).

Honestly, I don't feel in the slightest bit insecure about "criminals" getting this information or "using it against me" (and no-one has ever effectively explained to me how this information could be used against me anyway (or especially "why" it would be) other than what I consider to be paranoid ramblings). You can search online for the above information and probably find out a lot more about me, including seeing pictures, learning about my interests (including illegal activities), finding out what I do for a job and what I've done in the past, etc. None of this bothers me. If I didn't expect it to be public, I wouldn't have put it online to begin with.