Google
has launched a new tool called About me that lets you see, edit, and remove the
personal information that the company's services show to other users. Google
confirmed to VentureBeat that the feature started rolling out to users this
week. Google's various products and services (Gmail, Hangouts, Google Maps,
Inbox, Google Play, YouTube, Google+, and so on) sometimes ask you to share
certain personal information. These details are then shown to other users who
interact with you or search for you. Until now, all of this was stored in
Google+, assuming you created an account. But Google+ is no longer a
requirement for Google's services, and so the company needs a new solution, and
ideally one that isn't public by default.
Features
of the new Google About me are very similar to Facebook’s privacy options but seems very basic as of now.
Birthday :
Interestingly,
I also couldn’t remove my birthday. All I
could do was hide the year.
Add Info :
Clicking
the red “plus +” button on the About me page shows you exactly which details
Google wants you to add: Work and personal contact info (phone number, email,
and address), education (what schools you went to), work history (what
companies you work for, have worked for, and where), places (where you live,
have lived, and have visited), and sites (social media and other webpages). If
that sounds familiar, that’s because this is basically
what Google+ asks you for.
Indeed,
this is Google’s way of keeping track of
your personal information without forcing you to use Google+. That said, if you
have a Google+ account, this is the same set of details. If you add or remove
content on Google+ or on About me, the changes will be reflected on both.
Here I Enter Sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Blog
People Who Can See This Data :
The About
Me page also gives users the option of specifying the category of people who
can see their data. Users, for instance, can choose to let only those in their
immediate circle or extended circle see certain data elements. Or they can set
up a customized list of people who are allowed to view their personal
information. In addition, users have the option of making the information
completely private if they want to.
Privacy checking :
A
"Privacy Check" option on the About Me page lets individuals see and
adjust the data that Google uses to deliver targeted advertisements. By
clicking through the options on Privacy Check, users can get a complete listing
of their interests, as deduced by Google from their activities and interactions
on Google sites, like the kind of videos they watch on YouTube. They can then
control the ads they want delivered on their Google accounts, across all
devices, by simply checking or unchecking the box next to each interest. Plus,
people have the option of adding new interests so Google can deliver ads that
are relevant to those interests.
In
addition, the Privacy Check feature allows individuals to decide the tabs that
are visible to people who might visit their profile pages on Google sites. For
example, by checking or unchecking the box next to each item, an individual can
decide whether to give visitors the option of seeing their photos, reviews or
YouTube videos.
Included
in the many controls available on Google's new About Me tool is an option that
lets users choose the extent to which they want their experience personalized
on each Google site. Individuals can view the broad criteria that Google uses
for personalization purposes, such as their search and content browsing
history, their location history and their YouTube watch history. A "Manage
Activity" option gives people the ability to delete, update or block any
of the items from being used to deliver a personalized experience.
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