Might be of interest to some AOIR'ers here, either as a matter of scholastic research or just a personal concern. -- rick Google announces privacy changes across products; users can’t opt out By Cecilia Kang, Tuesday, January 24, 4:33 PM Google will soon know far more about who you are and what you do on the Web. The Web giant announced Tuesday that it plans to follow the activities of users across nearly all of its ubiquitous sites, including YouTube, Gmail and its leading search engine. Google has already been collecting some of this information. But for the first time, it is combining data across its Web sites to stitch together a fuller portrait of users. Consumers won’t be able to opt out of the changes, which take effect March 1. And experts say the policy shift will invite greater scrutiny from federal regulators of the company’s privacy and competitive practices. < -- > http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/google-tracks-consumers-acros... Google Blog Post @ http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/01/updating-our-privacy-policies-and-ter... --- Just because i'm near the punchbowl doesn't mean I'm also drinking from it.