Did Google get “intelligent” enough not to scan users’ emails anymore?

Or they are transferring the scanning in another form of their email service?

Google to preserve user’s privacy?

Even though analysts may say “Privacy is dead”, people are getting more and more aware and concerned about companies violating it.

Google as getting more and more “artificially intelligent” about this, though their services and users behavior, they probably already know this and are taking one step towards improving users privacy.

They say “free consumer Gmail users can remain confident that Google will keep privacy and security paramount as we continue to innovate.”

That is why they have announced that they won’t be using the free Gmail service for Ads personalization. Or, in other words, they won’t be scanning Gmail accounts for presenting the best Ads for their users.

Businesses that are using the G-Suite, as a paid service, don’t get their emails scanned, they claim. However, Google free users up until the end of the year, when Google plans to get this into action, won’t have that privilege. So, what Google does is, it routinely scans the inboxes of its free users to better target ads to them. And, if that isn’t enough, they combines that data with everything else they knows about their users to build their advertising profiles.

So, they want us to believe that they care about user’s privacy, or it is just a marketing trick?

Other scanning methods

Earlier this year Google announced the “Smart Reply in Gmail” for their Mobile apps, Gmail for Android and iOS.

They say: “Smart Reply suggests three responses based on the email you received.”

And their suggestions are pretty relevant and good. As time saving as this is for the end user, according to how they’ve presented it in their announcement, it very much violates their privacy. Why, you may ask?

Well, how can they know what they should offer as a possible reply? They most certainly scan users’ emails for keywords, phrases, style of writing, whether users are asking questions…

What is more, the Google app on your phone or Google Calendar, know a lot of things about you based on the emails you get, the searches you perform or the schedules you enter.  Do they say they will stop exploiting these Google features for presenting you with the best-tailored ads for your needs? No.

Ok, it may not be real people reading these emails but computers, but with the advance of Artificial Intelligence, these computers may perform different analysis which then the real humans may analyze and use for opinion influencing and shaping behaviors.

What can you do about it?

If you are using Google, there is nothing you can do about it. One way or another you will be tracked and your emails scanned.

If you want to preserve your privacy, you should encrypt your data: the one that you store online, the one that you communicate, the one that you search for.

Private data is a highly valuable commodity and it’s time you start protecting it appropriately.

Encrypting emails and your communication will help you safeguard your data and privacy and you don’t need to be an encryption expert to get the best security. You simply need to get your encrypted mailbox and you will be able to protect your privacy online.

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By |2019-03-06T14:06:27+00:00July 14th, 2017|Articles, Encryption, Mass Surveillance, Privacy|0 Comments

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