Google Keeps What Ask.com Erases

Stony Stevenson passed us an ITNews article on the AskEraser service we discussed the other day. The Ask.com service is intended to obscure a user's search data - but does it really go away? "AskEraser may remove user search query data from Ask.com's servers, but deleted data may live on, in part at least, on Google's servers. That's because Google delivers the bulk of the ads on Ask.com, based on information provided by Ask ... It may well use the information for other purposes, such as measuring the responsiveness of its systems. However, Leeds said he could not disclose the specifics of the contractual relationship between Ask and Google."

Ask not...

[fahrbot-bot]

My fellow Slashdotters: ask not what Ask.com can do with your data - ask what your data can do for Ask.com.

My fellow citizens of the Internet: ask not what Slashdot will do for your data, but what together we can do for the freedom of all data.

You never truly know what Google keep and censors.

[MindPrison]

Yes, Ive noticed that Google keeps things that eventually gets erased somewhere else, but Google also censors - partially because of violations of various company rules, laws, and much more (too much more!). SO much more in fact - that a little "googling" around the world....from ...servers around the world - will yield different results from what you may get googling from your country, think that I am paranoid and kidding? Try it!

Re:You never truly know what Google keep and censo

[Dice]

I would be surprised to learn that Google ever deleted anything. I know a few Googlers, and from what I gather information is generally made "unavailable to the public" rather than erased.

Ask's parent is breaking up.

[Animats]

Ask's parent company, IAC, is breaking up. They're a conglomerate; they own things like the Home Shopping Network, TicketMaster, Lending Tree, and CondoDirect. All those are being sold off. They're keeping all their "internet properties", like Excite (yes, that's where Excite ended up), CitySearch, Evite, Popular Screensavers (!), iWon, Match.com, and Zwinki. IAC collected many of the major losers from Web 1.0 under one corporate roof.

At this point, it hardly seems relevant what Ask does.

Re:You never truly know what Google keep and censo

[SL Baur]

Google uses your origin IP in addition to your browser agent when trying to rank results. Nothing sinister about it.

I'm always behind a public NAT of some sort, my interests don't bear any general resemblance to any others who may be using it. I don't object to that on grounds of paranoia (you would be paranoid too, if everyone was out to get you), but it's kind of stupid.

I'm irritated at "targeted" home mortgage ads for California residents only popping up.

I'm irritated at "targeted" ads for social networking sites when I'm reading email from my wife.

I'm irritated that there is even a concept called "click fraud" (and the only thing that irritates me more than that, is reading sites who defend the use of the word "fraud" in it).

I'm irritated at most things internet nowadays, but keeping search history and using that as special sauce on the results just doesn't work for me. I haven't been at a unique naked IP address since 1998.

I added ask.com to my search engine list thingie in Firefox and have been using it as my first choice search engine after I read about their privacy feature. So long as advertisers support the term "click fraud" and have a degree of hostility towards someone who does not shop on the internet (like blocking content to people who use AdBlock), I don't mind blocking content and I will never click on a random ad that pops up because if I clicked on it, it would be "click fraud" because I never buy things that way.

I do buy things over the internet and in fact spent several thousand dollars towards my family's Christmas/New Year's travel (plane/boat/hotel) that way, but I did it my way.

And yes, I do expect advertisers and those who depend upon them to cater to me. I can live without your content or your good will. You cannot survive without paying customers of which you just lost (a potential) one if you're annoying me. Don't bug me, but I'll call you if you have something I want to buy.

You folks who are happy with whatever Microsoft is peddling at the moment, or Google, or whomever ... you folks who are happy to share everything about you with whomever ... you foks who are happy to accept whatever is given to you ... I'm happy for you man! Enjoy! Some of us are different, O.K.?