
Google to Encrypt All Keyword Searches - trevin
http://blog.hubspot.com/google-encrypting-all-searches-nj
======
chestnut-tree
If Google cares about about user privacy, why do they prefix every search
result link with their own URL? Clearly the HTTP referrer header isn't enough
for them. They want to capture even more tracking data (even from the tiny
minority of users with referrer header switched off). Forget trying to copy
and paste a URL from their search page.

Given how lax they've been over deleting wi-fi data (promising to delete data
and then failing to do so), it's hard to take their offical statements on
privacy seriously.

Their reach over online browsing behaviour is simply pehenomenal - greater
than any other online company and yet their privacy policy is as vague as it
possibly could be.

This, for example, is from their Google Analytics privacy statement

 _" Google Analytics does not report the actual IP address information to
Google Analytics customers. Additionally, using a method known as IP masking,
website owners that use Google Analytics have the option to tell Google
Analytics to only use a portion of the IP address, rather than the entire IP
address, for geolocation."_

Notable by omission is what Google do with the anlaytics data themselves, they
presumably capture (and save) the full IP address as well as all the tracking
data from the site using Google Analytics.

[http://www.google.co.uk/intl/en_uk/analytics/privacyoverview...](http://www.google.co.uk/intl/en_uk/analytics/privacyoverview.html)

~~~
signed0
While I wish Google would stop doing this, for now there are extensions that
will replace the URLs in search results with the actual ones.
[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/undirect/dohbiijnj...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/undirect/dohbiijnjeiejifbgfdhfknogknkglio)

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runn1ng
I am not sure if I get the post right, but if you want to know what keywords
people use when clicking on your website and/or seeing your website in search
results (and on which average position you are with that keyword), and on
which page they land the most often (and with which keyword), you can use
Google WebMaster tools

For free, for every website.

[https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/](https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/)

~~~
sologoub
True, but I don't think there is a way to get this data in session and be able
to get detailed funnel progression by keyword. That also limits dynamic
content based on keywords.

~~~
runn1ng
Oh.

OK. So the websites cannot "analyze me" as properly.

I am OK with that.

~~~
icebraining
Google still can, though.

~~~
runn1ng
Not really...

What parent said is that marketers cannot now measure funnel progression (I
had to google that) by keyword.

Google cannot do that, since it has no way of reading the server's data. (If
the server doesn't have Google Analytics injected, of course.)

~~~
RBerenguel
Google has its own funnel, with Analytics, AdSense and all its myriad other
web properties. They can track and analyse users much more than specific
companies.

A simpler example would be that I would not know which keywords were driving
people to my site (it's "learn to remember everything" or is "snickerdoodles
recipe"?) A stupid question? In my case yes, but for a company, it's crucial
to know. Not even for pinpointing users, just in broad terms, with relevant
date data, landing page and some other goodies (which webmaster tools does not
offer, and looks unlikely to offer in the future)

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PhasmaFelis
Is this guy actually _complaining_ that Google is taking measures to increase
user privacy? Or am I being too cynical/not cynical enough? 'Cause my knee-
jerk response is "Dear Marketers, This is why people hate you."

~~~
walid
I'm not a marketer but this is a matter of knowing what people want so that
they, marketers or their businesses, know what to work on making and selling.
It isn't really a privacy issue since Google does track you and know who you
are even if you are not signed in.

~~~
PhasmaFelis
"Google tracks my every move" is more privacy than "Google tracks my every
move and lets advertisers know too."

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ComputerGuru
Really, this isn't news and should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone
that's looked at their keyword metrics anytime in the past year.

This graph (all search traffic plotted against keyword-not-provided) speaks
for itself: [https://neosmart.net/blog/2013/google-search-encrypted-
traff...](https://neosmart.net/blog/2013/google-search-encrypted-traffic-not-
provided/)

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danmaz74
It's not as accurate, but you can still get an idea about keywords traffic
from Google using webmaster tools (Search Traffic -> Search Queries)

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iamben
As I posted earlier. Not a solution, but maybe helpful for some:
[http://notprovidedkit.com](http://notprovidedkit.com)

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walshemj
Of course PPC ad users still get that data - Google transparent when it feels
like it.

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slig
So if the site is secure (HTTPS) it can get the referrer and thus the keyword?

~~~
dangrossman
No, as Google does not include the keyword in the referrer either. They moved
it from the query string to a hash tag, which is not part of the URL sent in
the referrer header.

~~~
ihsw
Not only that but they actively put in an intermediary redirect between the
search results page and the destination, so that website owners will know they
came from Google, but not the search term used.

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knodi
Let go a head and say this. Fuck you marketers. Thank you Google.

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programminggeek
Well this makes Google Analytics awfully pointless for what most people care
about most of the time...

~~~
jiggy2011
I believe google analytics does still track keywords because google add some
JS to each page to track there.

Kinda sucks if you run a competing tracking service though.

~~~
dangrossman
Google Analytics doesn't have a special exemption. The keyword from secure
Google searches shows up as "(not provided)" in the relevant reports.

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yashkadakia
That's great. Somebody wake me when they stop sharing the key with anyone who
asks.

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ffrryuu
Finally, my router has a feature that shows what the user googled for, it's
creepy.

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belorn
When I grew up, the stores around me commonly had those voluntary
questionnaires. Each include a bunch of questions that if I wanted to answer,
provide the store with market research. Some times even, those stores include
a small reward for answering - A chance to win a prize or simply a buck's
worth of store credit.

I don't see those anymore. I haven't been asked by a stranger to answer a few
questions in years. Even the computer that the fast food restaurant had looks
to be gone.

~~~
codyb
Hmm, it's been a while since I checked but last time I went to Dunkin Donuts
they still had that "Get a free donut on your next visit by filling out yada
yada yada" on the bottom of the receipt and CVS seems to frequently have
contest offers for a small survey. Similarly Tops supermarkets used to have
something like CVS's when I used to shop there as recently as a few months
ago. Maybe it's only chains now?

~~~
belorn
I haven't seen any lately, but it is good to hear that it lives one somewhere.
I remember seeing survey around 2005 in a online store I commonly visited, but
they stopped.

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menegattig
What about Chango ([http://www.chango.com/](http://www.chango.com/))? Most
part of their revenue comes from Search Remarketing...

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kkmickos
I'm pretty sure I still can see what people searched for when ending up on my
site in Google Analytics. Or did I misunderstand something?

~~~
SuperChihuahua
No you can't! It says "(not provided)" in GA

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smonff
Encrypt all keywords and store it for later use...

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powertower
Does google show the keywords in Webmaster Tools?

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dil8
Maybe I am cynical, but this seems more like a 'user privacy' PR stunt than
Google actually caring about user privacy.

~~~
walid
Nah, I think this is how Google is trying to make it less visible how they
rank and what people search for. If you consider how Bing is gaining ground
and that Yahoo may be inclined to build their own search engine and that such
competitors can legitimately get Google based data from other sources easily
by buying it, you'll want to hold your trade secrets close to the chest.

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bsullivan01
Let's call what it is not about: user privacy. Adwords, that I guess gobbles
most clicks on a lot of searches, still transmits the data.

This is the latest from a desperate Google. Why is Google desperate? Virtually
all their money is being made via ads, their original business plan. Asteroid
mining and other BS "We're curing death" press releases aside, Google is
dependent on adwords so they need to keep turning knobs to force sites to
advertise. Their PE is 25+ so they need to show huge increase quarter to
quarter to keep the scheme going.

This month Google also made the Keyword Tool for advertisers only. And in
another major coincidence after Page took over, Google has made major algo
changes (Panda, Penguin) giving sites virtually no way to come back in ranking
but that greatly improved Google's revenue. Shocking, huh? Of course they can
advertise to make up for the lost traffic, like the sites that rank high
(brands.)

So do I have a smoking gun memo? Nope, but it doesn't take a genius to figure
it out. Ever wondered why Wikipedia ranks #1 for "computer"? IMO, it has to do
with forcing Dell, MS, HP and others to advertise and to increase clicks on
ads. I doubt most people want to know what a "computer" is when searching
Google on a computer.

That Gmail "promotions tab"? Google attacking another free source of sales and
marketing.

P.S. I expect a gazillion down votes from you know who. I don't care.

~~~
RobAtticus
First, I don't think we agree what desperate means. Desperate makes it sound
like revenues are shrinking or something.

Second, if your theory were true, why is Wikipedia not #1 for "laptop"?
Wouldn't that be a more powerful keyword to force people to advertise for?

~~~
Samuel_Michon
> why is Wikipedia not #1 for "laptop"?

Browsing Google while logged out, using its ‘no country redirect’ option, the
first non-ad result is Wikipedia.

(Even using those settings, Google will serve local ads – in my case, in
Dutch)

[http://i.imgur.com/UevuyEy.png](http://i.imgur.com/UevuyEy.png)

~~~
bsullivan01
I'd guess that due to commonly used resolutions most users cannot see beyond
the Wikipedia link so it's all set up perfectly to increase ad clicks: 3-4
relevant links (er, ads) or Wikipedia.

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melange
Why isn't google open with the data it collects? Surely that would be an easy
step towards "organizing the worlds information and making it universally
accessible".

~~~
ttctciyf
I know, it's almost as if they lied about their mission statement and it's
really "maximize shareholder profit."

This is really disturbing my worldview.

You don't think other huge corporations might have mission statements that are
really marketing tools aimed at disguising their profit motive and disregard
for users?

No! it's unthinkable. We must be missing something!

~~~
walid
Haaaaaaaahahahaha! The Internet sure makes me laugh more than any human being.
Screw those guys called friends.

