Google Conspiracy Theories

I just got a gmail account. It's quite amazing. However, the privacy policy (which I know none of us are ACTUALLY supposed to read) is a bit disturbing, as it includes the following:

Google employees do not access the content of any mailboxes unless you specifically request them to do so (for example, if you are having technical difficulties accessing your account) or if required by law, to maintain our system, or to protect Google or the public.

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As a standard email protocol, when you send an email from your Gmail account, Gmail includes your email address and user name in the header of the email. Beyond this, we do not disclose your personally identifying information to third parties unless we believe we are required to do so by law or have a good faith belief that such access, preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to (a) satisfy any applicable law, regulation, legal process or governmental request, (b) enforce the Gmail Terms of Use, including investigation of potential violations thereof, (c) detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security or technical issues (including, without limitation, the filtering of spam), (d) respond to user support requests, or (e) protect the rights, property or safety of Google, its users and the public.

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Personal information collected by Google may be stored and processed in the United States or any other country in which Google Inc. or its agents maintain facilities. By using Gmail, you consent to any such transfer of information outside of your country.

I've long resisted getting a gmail account because it seemed like a Google/CIA plot to get people to transfer enormous amounts of personal information to a company with excellent search technology to do with what it will. The privacy policy does nothing to allay those fears: "We don't access your account or give anyone your personal information unless we feel like it."

Actually, the whole Google-Library project fits right in with that. Turns out that actual librarians really don't like to give out library records, and they make a pretty big stink about it when asked to. But google searches? Fair Game.

Remember that abandoned Total Information Awareness program? I love google as much as the next person, but I'll encrypt the zip backups of my documents folder before using gmail as a free backup drive...