State attorneys general: Google privacy changes appear to harm consumers

Dozens of state attorneys general wrote Google’s chief executive to express “strong concerns” that the company’s new privacy policies starting next week will violate consumer privacy.

In a letter to CEO Larry Page, the state attorneys general said the plan to begin sharing consumer data across Google’s services on March 1 “forces these consumers to allow information across all of these products to be shared, without giving them the proper ability to opt out.” The law enforcement officials said users may want to keep their Web searching history separate from information they get from Gmail or YouTube. But for users signed on to those services, that data will be blended by the search giant to serve up ads better tailored to users preferences. Google has defended its plans, which have raised concerns among European regulators and privacy groups.