Google, Privacy, and You

Attribution: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/logo-google-color-2650941/

The subject of a recent opinion piece in the New York Times discusses the “privacy paradox,” a sort of cognitive dissonance that compels us to share information about ourselves on every available platform while simultaneously cursing the technology that makes our compulsive sharing habits so addictive. That paradox can have wide-ranging implications for the legal community, which now has an ethical obligation to “remain competent in the practice of law, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology.” The ubiquity of Google makes it necessary for lawyers to understand the impact it can have on the clients being served. For example, when Google periodically pings your device to track your location even when your device-location feature is turned off , it might implicate jurisdictionally-specific privacy rights or contract law, as a recent investigation by the attorney general of Arizona suggests.

Mapping a device’s location is only one tracking method commonly employed by prominent tech companies. Google tracks you in all sorts of ways through apps, it’s Chrome browser, and more. The information is used to facilitate marketing efforts, including sales to third-party marketing firms, and to integrate your online experience. A recent New York Times op-ed by Google’s CEO provides the company’s view on protecting data privacy while using the data collected to create a more customized economy. At its annual developer conference just weeks ago, Google reinforced its commitment to privacy with the launch of two new efforts — better cookie controls and guards against fingerprinting. Additional trust-building measures are likely in the works (including security features in the redesign of Gmail), especially as increasing numbers of users defect from Google to alternative browsers like Brave and Vivaldi.

The takeaway for legal professionals: Follow news about Google and keep reminding clients who find themselves in a privacy paradox about how information is used in the information economy.

Using Google's Verbatim Search to Customize and Refine Your Search Queries

Last week’s Tech Tip presented strategies for structuring more effective Google search queries. This week, we revisit Google to focus on another useful feature, a small but powerful tool for clarifying and refining your searches.

The feature, known as Verbatim Search, allows you to more precisely customize your search queries and override Google’s “Did you mean” feature. Here’s how it works: Suppose you’re conducting research on the trademark for a cleverly-named product line, a variety of tea-related beverages with names such as HonesTea, RealiTea, IngenuiTea. When you search for HonestTea, for example, Google asks, “Did you mean Honest Tea?” and restructures your search query as two separate words. This assumption can cause frustration, but, more importantly, it yields inaccurate search results.

Fortunately, this problem is easily corrected. By using the Verbatim Search feature, you can override Google’s default settings. Simply go to the Google search page. Under the Google search box, click on Search Tools. Then, click on All Results to expand the drop-down menu, revealing the Verbatim Search feature. Select this option. Google will repeat the search, giving you a more precise set of search results that accurately capture the intended meaning of your search terms.

As another example (pictured above), try searching the terms parole evidence in the default Google search box. Automatically, Google reinterprets your terms as parol evidence. By selecting Verbatim Search, your search terms will be rendered exactly as they appear in the search box, giving you the results for parole evidence that you actually seek. With Verbatim Search, you have the power to control your search. You may even feel that you’re outsmarting Google!