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The Issue Of Trust With Search Engines And The World Wide Web
en years ago, trust is a destination in our quest for the
word that you won’t often answers to most of our day to day
hear mentioned when talking quest for information. Suddenly
about the Internet. But as we find ourselves searching
people’s lives became more Google or other search engines
intertwined with computers and as for our most personal issues.
computers continued to push Questions that normally we’re to
towards a networked model, trust shy to ask our friends about got
becomes more and more of an their answers from the search
issue. engines. As the keywords and
phrases that we enter on search
How did the issue of trust become engines piles up on their
such big thing to the Internet databases, they become more and
community? The answer probably more of a tell tale of certain
lies in the story of one of the aspects of our lives. There would
biggest Internet success story so have been no issue if our search
far – the story of Google, and queries vanished as quickly as we
how it revolutionized search. have asked them, but
unfortunately this is not the
Although Google did not invent case. Search engines keep a
the search engine, it was the record of what we search on their
first technology company that search boxes.
successfully created a search
engine that gave search results The concept of personalization is
of exceptional quality and one of the next big frontiers in
relevance. Because of this, users the story of search, primarily
started to become more dependent because this is the one thing
to the Google search engine in that might provide the most
finding information on the significant step towards quest
Internet. Google became our first for the perfect search engine –
one that gives us exactly what that it had to protect these
the users are looking for. Search search records if it wanted
personalization will be the protect the company’s credibility
reason why a soccer player will and to keep its user’s trust.
find soccer-related results when Although the information that was
he searches for “football” on a being asked by the Government did
search engine while an American not contain details that will
football player will find his own personally identify individuals,
set of search results when does the move nevertheless made the
the same search. The search public more aware of the possible
results that we will see will be dangers of other people accessing
different from what others see a record of their search queries.
because we have differing domains In the end Google won and was
of interest. But first, in order only required to submit a portion
for search personalization to of the original data requested,
happen, the search engines must but the fact remained that the
keep a profile of all our actions of the other three search
previous queries for analysis. engines is something that
This is where the problem starts, customers should be wary of,
and it was brought more into the whether the data contained
prying eyes of the public when personally-identifiable
the US Federal Government asked information or not. It was more
for these search records from the of an issue of the said search
major search engines. Three of engine companies easily caving in
the major search engines, Yahoo, to pressure of the government to
MSN and AOL followed the request give such kind of data.
without questions, but Google
questioned the subpoena and Because of this and the growing
legally battled against giving concerns about privacy and trust
the requested data. Google knew with search engines a survey was
done among 800 American Internet goes well beyond search though.
users. The survey revealed that There is this trend in the
most users were unhappy about computer industry where the
search engine companies keeping software applications that we use
records of their search queries. are becoming web services rather
The majority were also opposed to than stand alone desktop
the idea of the government applications. Although this
monitoring user’s search engine offers the benefit of being able
queries. Not that people only to work virtually anywhere (where
cared now, it’s just that many there is Internet connection),
didn’t realize the possible this also has the serious
implications and dangers of the implication that the user’s data
fact that their search queries will be stored on the Internet
were being monitored and kept by rather than on their hard drives.
the search engine companies. This has already happened widely
in email, where web-based
The scenario of the personalized implementations are becoming more
search fully maximized is not too and more popular. With the advent
far off. If this is the future of of next-generation web
search, then search engines must applications fueled by new
gain the trust of its users. The technologies and ideas, the
user’s fear of saved search concept of the web computer is
queries is not so much about the slowly being realized. Privacy
idea that the search engines are and trust will become more
saving it as it is about the important in the future because
dangers of the possibility that then, user profiles will not be
these information might get to the only things that will be
the wrong hands. entrusted to the Internet
companies -- users’ documents and
The issue of trust and privacy files must also be kept safe and
secure. users. Search engine companies
and web applications providers
The issue and problems of trust must continue to strive to make
with Internet search engine and their systems more secure and
the World Wide Web in general is robust, and their policies
not about to go away. As the stronger against sharing of
Internet industry pushes on to sensitive data. Only when users
new era of personalization and begin to trust these companies
web applications, the issue of will the idea of a web-based
trust will become more relevant. operating system be fully
As the industry leader, Google is realized.
showing a good effort in building
company trust in the minds of the
About the Author:
http://www.theinternetone.net
Read more articles by: Danny Wirken
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