What's the Point of Google's Browsers "Tracking Website Habits"?

Amie

Amie

Mac Convert for Life
Someone recently told me (actually more than one person) that Google's browsers (such as Chrome) are infamous for "tracking users' website habits." Why? What is the point of that? Why would they care what sites strangers visit? I could see it they wanted to slam you with spam and advertisements via pop-ups and emails but they don't. I've been using Chrome for a while now and I have NEVER not ONCE received any spam or annoying advertisements.
 
One quick thought that comes to mind is that they might use it for search engine optimization. Meaning that they collect the stats from everybody's browsers and the websites with the most hits, they will move to the top of the search list when you type in certain keywords.
 
Some years ago Google was still advertising that they never delete any search related data. So anything you'd have searched using google since the 1990s is still there.
Google cookies have had the expiry date of 2038 for a long time.
And at least years back deleting any emails permanently from gmail was a chore.
All of which raised enough questions, and made me not always want to give google or its affiliates cookies.

Well, they like to get and keep data from their users. Like with anyone or anything that has enough data of you, they know your habits. Your doctors, your credit card companies, your grocery, friends, significant others. The more data about you they have, the more they generally like you. And they (google, your doctor, your credit card companies) don't collect the data for just all-good and non-profit purposes.

Optimizing the search results for you is one application for using your data. Law enforcement (as widely as it's defined by the PATRIOT act) is another legitimate application for viewing the data about you.
 
Oh, ok. So they use it in a positive way. Well, that's good to know! The people who mentioned this made it sound like it was a BAD thing. Thanks to you both for clarifying! :)
 
. . . until the Lizard People finally reveal themselves and divide up the human population between "slaves" and "food" based on whether or not you searched for pictures of Brett Favererer's schlong. . . .

--J.D.
 
Oh crap, I better stop searching for that :O.

Cause I wanna be a Morlock when that time comes!
morlock%20eyes.jpg
 
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