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Fed up with Google? Try Scroogle
Powerful search tool without privacy violations


As more Internet users grow cautious about Google's seemingly unquenchable desire for the private, personal data of its users, one entrepreneur is using the search engine giant's own algorithms to offer consumers a choice.

It's called Scroogle and offers searchers all the power of Google but none of the privacy concerns.

http://www.scroogle.org/cgi-bin/scraper.htm

One of Google's fiercest critics is Daniel Brandt. He runs Google Watch, which, among other things, tracks the growing number of privacy concerns about the company and its practices.

His latest endeavor, however, actually offers Internet users the opportunity to use Google's powerful search tools without personal data being collected by the company.

Scroogle filters searches through Brandt's servers before hitting Google. It effectively hides the address of the searcher.

Brandt says he doesn't save the search terms and deletes all his logs every week. Google, on the other hand, saves records on Internet searches for two years.

Scroogle has become the choice of Internet civil libertarians like Kurt Opshal, staff attorney for Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Last week, Google Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt said his company's goal for the future is to maximize the personal information it holds on users.

"The goal is to enable Google users to be able to ask the question such as 'What shall I do tomorrow?' and 'What job shall I take?'"

Schmidt fretted: "We cannot even answer the most basic questions because we don't know enough about you. That is the most important aspect of Google's expansion."

Privacy concerns are not the only controversy causing Internet users to look for alternatives for their searches.

For the ninth year in a row, Google this week declined to mark Memorial Day with one of its trademarked holiday logo modifications – something the company has done for the Chinese New Year, Valentine's Day, Halloween and other observances that have nothing to do with American patriotism or commemorations of military service or war dead.

Google has, in the past, highlighted special honors for Percival Lowell, Edvard Munch and Louis Braille. Lowell was an astronomer, Munch an artist, and Braille developed Braille writing for the blind.

But while the rest of the nation marked Memorial Day, Google did not.

Other days that have been honored have included National Teachers Day, Women's Day, Ray Charles' birthday, World Water Day and St. George's Day.

Besides overlooking Veterans Day and Memorial Day since the company's inception in 1999, it also has ignored Christmas.

It has caused some, like WND's Joseph Farah, to question whether Google is living up to its corporate motto, "Don't Be Evil."

In his latest book, "Stop The Presses! The Inside Story of the New Media Revolution," Farah characterizes the search giant as just that – evil.

Of particular concern to Farah is Google's policy of appeasement to the Chinese totalitarian government, which required company officials to ensure search results in that country would be limited to conform with Communist Party guidelines.

He devotes an entire chapter in his book to making the case that Google is an immoral company.