Google activity goodbye?

[jacksmar]

https://www.expressvpn.com/internet-privacy/how-to-permanently-delete-your-google-history/#download

It knows you better than you know yourself. It knows every smartphone you’ve thought about buying, every coworker you’ve tried to find dirt on, every embarrassing ailment you’ve suffered…

It’s your Google Activity (formerly known as Google Web & App History), and it knows everything you’ve searched for… dating back to 2005. Yikes!


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I don't have have a google account. Any thoughts on this?

[FORD]

ExpressVPN is trying to sell you their service, so it's fair to say they are presenting you with the worst case scenario as far as Google goes. It's easy to limit what Google knows about you. Most obviously, don't use their search engine, so they can track your web surfing. Also, don't use the Google Chrome browser (there are alternatives which use the Chromium engine and are compatible with all the Chrome plugins, but without the Google spy/spamware built in). Don't use G mail for anything "sensitive" and pretty much the same thing applies to comments on YouTube.

And if you have Android devices, look up how to download your apps and side load them onto the device, avoiding the Google Play site altogether. Because THAT site is the one Google domain which will NOT let you delete the history of any device you have registered with it. Sure, it's arguably a minor pain in the ass to have to update all the apps manually, but your phones will be wasting less data, and your video devices will have more resources available for streaming from Netflix, Sling, or your favorite pirate site.

As to whether a VPN itself is a good idea... with all the fascist bullshit from both the government AND corporate sides determined to censor the internet lately, a VPN is definitely a good move to keep what you do online your business, and not Trump's, the CEO of Comcast, or the thugs at the MPAA.

[jacksmar]

So does apply to google accounts or google analytics? Both? I see google ad sense on just about everything. I'm assuming that's part of their predictive algorithm?

Is this a google data silo stored for or on internet presence?

[FORD]

You can block Google Analytics either with an ad blocker like ublock origin (https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock) or a script blocker like NoScript (https://noscript.net/) (which will usually show you a list of all the different crapwares running on any particular website, and allow you to block them all individually. If you have ublock origin installed you really don't need NoScript as it blocks the scripts as well as the ads. Some people (for whatever insane reason) still like to see ads on their browsers, so for them, NoScript is probably the best option, at least on Firefox. Google tends to block any plugins from the Chrome store which interfere with their spamming & spying, so they don't have a NoScript. You can always block all java scripts and all cookies, but that will impact some legitimate websites as well, so it's not the best idea.

[Kristy]

You can block Google Analytics either with an ad blocker like ublock origin (https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock) or a script blocker like NoScript (https://noscript.net/) (which will usually show you a list of all the different crapwares running on any particular website, and allow you to block them all individually.

That won't halt Google, slave FORD

[FORD]

The only way to "halt" them is to never use any of their products or services at all. So, if you use only a Firefox browser, do all your web searches on Duck Duck Go (or God forbid, Bing), don't own any Android devices, have Google Analytics blocked, and never use GMail or YouTube, you should be reasonably secure from the Silicon Valley spyspammers. At least until they buy up some technology that you do use. Like they did with YouTube. Or SageTV. Or the Grand Central VOIP telephone system (which became Google Voice). All three of which were far better before Google swallowed them up.

[Kristy]

Okay, I'll keep that in mind every time you post a vid from JewTube on here.

[FORD]

Like I said, it's next to impossible to be completely free of Google. But I don't make it easy for them.

[Kristy]

Oh yeah, you have been really bringing THE MAN known as Google with your shitty third party installed malware.