Just over a couple of weeks ago Google launched its Google Takeout service that allows users to download their personal data from Google. Google is touting this new service as its ‘being open’ ethos. Every once in a while I find this paranoid feeling stirring up in my mind that makes me think ‘What is it that Google knows about me?’. The answer may be scary but Google is ready to give you a chance to find out!
Google’s Takeout service essentially lets you download your personal data from various different services for backup of other uses that you might think appropriate. I’m not sure why anybody would want anything else but to see what Google actually knows about them through their services. Google today announced that it has added ‘+1’ to its Data Liberation Project and users can download their personal data to check exactly what they have ‘+1ed’.
“We’ve still got plenty more data to liberate — including +1’s on stream posts and comments — but we just wanted to give you a quick update,” said Brian Fitzpatrick on the Data Liberation Front blog.
Frankly its this promise to add more services to liberate more data is what is keeping me interested. Otherwise I don’t believe anyone will be particularly interested in downloading the data that is currently being offered.
What I’d really like to find out is the keywords that Google associates with my account to provide ‘better search results’ as Google puts it. I believe it will give me a chance to see how Google sees me. Too twisted? Surely my concerns about what Internet giants like Google and Facebook know about me are shared by a few. So basically the question we are asking is this, What service would you like to be included in this effort by Google’s Data Liberation Front, is it even useful or is it a service that is just meant to be forgotten over time?
What’s your opinion?
Watch the video for the announcement:
