It's both sweet and slightly off putting that my Google Doodle is a birthday cake with a Happy Birthday message from Google. I am of course logged into my Google account, but it's just one of the many ways that companies use your personal information. I can't complain to loudly because I am certainly part of the reason. I sign up for almost everything. I get tons of free discounts and goodies through my email, but its' not really free is it? My personal information is a form of payment. Companies use our personal information to market to us. They know how old we are, whether we are college educated and how much our household income is. If we haven't explicitly given them this information they have figured out most of this from our Internet searches and our purchases. Even if we are very careful and vigilant they will still find someway to glean information from our online presence. Since I don't plan on living off the grid any time soon I'll just continue on my merry way.
A coworker and I were discussing this fact just the other day. Unless you want to live off the grid, it is virtually impossible to maintain privacy. I think the topic came up when we were looking up the specs on the new Xbox One.
ReplyDeleteCompanies are definitely getting much more invasive.
DeleteWas it really your birthday? Happy belated birthday, then! That google thing is definitely sweet and creepy at the same time. I wonder why I didn't get one. Or maybe I didn't even notice. Best wishes for the Maymester and beyond.
ReplyDeleteYes, it really was and thanks. You only notice the message if you're logged into your email before you go to the homepage.
DeleteOMG, I get birthday e-mails from thinkgeek and Amazon. The creepiest thing though was when the adverts in the scrolling panels on the side of Facebook or Google change to reflect my searches. There is no way enough people follow Dr. Who to justify that many ads!
ReplyDeleteSorry I missed it...HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I hope you enjoyed it! I love receiving emails telling my happy birthday from companies. Especially if they're giving me a free appetizer or dessert! LOL!
ReplyDeleteWow! Interesting! My birthday is Sunday, so it will be interesting to see if the same happens to me! I am pretty much always signed into Google.
ReplyDelete