Google’s new privacy policy now effective

Google’s new privacy policy went into effect today, despite requests from European regulators asking the search giant to delay. The move by Google to consolidate its privacy policy has raised some concerns around the information the company has on its users.

“The new policy doesn’t change any existing privacy settings or how any personal information is shared outside of Google. We aren’t collecting any new or additional information about users. We won’t be selling your personal data. And we will continue to employ industry-leading security to keep your information safe,” writes Alma Whitten, Director of Privacy, Product and Engineering at Google.

According the internet giant, the privacy policy “will enable us to build a better, more intuitive user experience across Google for signed-in users”. The message from Google is clear then: the new policy is about making all of its products work better for you.

“If you’re signed in to Google, you expect our products to work really beautifully together. For example, if you’re working on Google Docs and you want to share it with someone on Gmail, you want their email right there ready to use. Our privacy policies have always allowed us to combine information from different products with your account—effectively using your data to provide you with a better service,” notes Whitten.

The new policy isn’t just about consolidation though. There are some changes. Google says it has removed “inconsistencies” in the policy to better combine data from all products.

“So in the future, if you do frequent searches for Jamie Oliver, we could recommend Jamie Oliver videos when you’re looking for recipes on YouTube — or we might suggest ads for his cookbooks when you’re on other Google properties,” adds Whitten.

The latest authority to caution Google over its privacy policy is the government of Japan amidst fears that it would infringe on the country’s data protection laws.