Microsoft and Ask step up search privacy efforts

Stephen Withers
Monday, 23 July 2007 11:00

Your IT - Home IT

Microsoft and Ask have jointly called for an industry-wide approach to data privacy issues in search and advertising. Both companies have recently announced changes that may improve the anonymity of search records.

"As search and other online services progress, it's important for our customers to be able to trust that their information is being used appropriately and in a way that provides value to them," said Peter Cullen, chief privacy strategist at Microsoft. "We hope others in the industry will join us in developing and supporting principles that address these important issues. People should be able to search and surf online without having to navigate a complicated patchwork of privacy policies."

"Anonymous user data can be very useful to enhance search products for all users, but people should have access to privacy controls based on their level of comfort around the storage of their search data," said Doug Leeds, vice president of product management at Ask.com. "We're committed to developing new ways to give consumers the control they are entitled to when it comes to searching online, and hope others will join us in engaging in dialogue on these important issues."

Over the weekend, Microsoft announced it will anonymise Live Search data after 18 months in the absence of a user's opt-in request for longer storage.

Storing users' histories allows search engines and advertisers to return items that are more likely to match the user's needs. For example, if someone searches for 'mercury' and picks results that relate to the US manned space program rather than the planet, there's a good chance that a subsequent search for 'gemini' won't be related to astrology.

Last week, Ask said it will soon introduce AskEraser, a tool that allows search users to specify that their search histories will not be retained. Search results pages will show the user's privacy status along with the results.

In future, Ask will also "completely disassociate search history from a user's IP address or cookie information after 18 months."

"We're extremely pleased to see a new breed of innovative, competitive tools that allow users greater control over their personal information and online experiences," said Ari Schwartz, deputy director of the Center for Democracy and Technology.

Google recently announced that it would expire cookies two years after the user's last visit to a Google site, and that it will anonymise search histories after 18 months in an attempt to satisfy privacy concerns raised by an European Union working party.