phranque - 6:10 am on Mar 15, 2007 (gmt 0)

from CNET News.com [news.com.com]:

Google is changing its data retention practices to make it harder to identify the specific computers used in searches. ... Currently, Google maintains the search data logs indefinitely. Under the new policy announced on Wednesday, which Google expects to have fully implemented by the end of the year, the company will anonymize the final eight bits of the IP address and the cookie data after somewhere between 18 months and 24 months, unless legally required to retain the data for longer. The information on specific searches will remain indefinitely, but it will be much harder to tie the searches to specific individuals or computers.

i hope they also maintain the policy of telling the federal government to shove it whenever possible...