tedster - 10:49 pm on May 22, 2010 (gmt 0)

The Register article that tangor linked to above also had this to say:

A Google spokesman also indicated it plans to make SSL encryption the default for search. "We hope to expand the functionality once we better understand how it affects users' search experience," the spokesman told us.

So there we have it. Referrer information in our server logs has only a short time to live, unless there's a change in disposition from the 'plex. I do hold onto a slim thread of hope, because when the AJAX code in SERPs messed with referrer information, they did back out of that move. This may be another case of one team having no communication with others, and no conception of all the repercussions of their "innovation".

And where are all those voices complaining about search referrer information being intercepted? Did I miss hearing that complaint? It's not even close to the top of privacy concerns with Google.