When Google Brainstorms, Online World Shudders

[Commentary] Is Google about to do to online privacy what body scanners did to airline travelers? It might seem that way given the reaction to a bit of news that, intentionally or not, leaked out of Google last week.

Google is considering using anonymous identifiers to track consumers' browsing habits online. This technology could eventually take the place of the controversial "cookies" that marketing outfits now plant on our computers to track where we go on the Web and then pitch us related products. Google called any move good for "users' security" and the economics of the Internet. It said its concepts are at a very early stage and declined further comment. Still, what might seem like just another incremental tech development set off alarms, and a lot of speculation, among privacy advocates and advertising firms. The reason, of course, is Google's dominance in our online lives.