Google Tweaks Buzz After Privacy Concerns
Several days after the launch of its Buzz social networking product,
Google on Friday said it was making a few tweaks to the service in response to privacy concerns.
Security options regarding the types of information that is publicly displayed will now be more prominently displayed, and Google has simplified the process for following or blocking other Buzz users, the company said in a
blog post.
"There's been concern from some people who thought their contacts were being made public without their knowledge (in particular the lists of people they follow, and the people following them)," wrote Todd Jackson, product manager for
Gmail and Google Buzz. "In addition, others felt they had too little control over who could follow them and were upset that they lacked the ability to block people who didn't yet have public profiles from following them."
Buzz
made its debut on Tuesday; it adds a "news feed" feature to Gmail and has also been incorporated into Google's mobile offering on Android phones and the iPhone. When people sign up for Buzz, Google will automatically follow the people with whom you chat or e-mail most.
Users must also create a Google public profile, a standalone page that shows up in Google search results and serves as a virtual business card of sorts. "We do this so we'll know what name to display next to your posts — and so the people you follow know who you are," Jackson wrote.
There was
some concern, however, that these profiles would display the names of people you are following, essentially making your Gmail contact list public.
Jackson acknowledged that when you create that profile, Google notifies users "that the lists of people you follow and the people following you will be displayed on your public profile, [though] you can view, edit, and even hide these lists."
But users told Google that the option to change those settings was hard to find. As a result, "we've changed the notice to make it very clear [by] making this option more prominent in the set up process, to ensure everyone who wanted to hide these lists can do so easily," Jackson wrote.
A box titled "How do you want to appear to others" will now include a check-box that says "Show the list of people I'm following and the list of people following me on my public profile." To hide your followers, click the box, or click the "View and edit the people you follow" to customize your account.
The change will be rolled out to all Gmail users on Friday. Those who have already created a profile can update their settings in the "edit" section of their public profile. Google also made a few changes to following options.
"We are making it easier to block anyone, by adding 'Block' links to the list of people following you," Jackson wrote. "Previously, you were only able to block people from following you after they had created a public profile. Now, you can block anyone, regardless of whether or not they've already created profiles for themselves."
Finally, Google will separate the friends who have created a public profile and are actively participating in Buzz from those who have not.
"With this change you'll be able to see who is on the public list of followers that everyone else sees," Jackson concluded.
]
]
]
