[basisword]

Your reason for splitting this into two separate settings is understandable.

>> ...with the hope that more people will feel comfortable getting the benefits of better search in Workspace without having to opt-into search history being tracked for all Google services.

This is unacceptable. People have already opted out or been opted out by their admin. If they want to opt back in now that the setting is more granular, they can, but this choice should not be made for them.

Let's be honest, the real reason for making this opt-out again is that you hope lots of people won't notice and you can start collecting their data. Please reconsider.

[eganist]

> Let's be honest, the real reason for making this opt-out again is that you hope lots of people won't notice and you can start collecting their data. Please reconsider.

I'm keen on seeing if there's any legal code or case law that addresses opting someone back in who's already opted out.

And I'm hoping there's personal culpability for the change, too. Not just corporate fines. But this is probably just wishful thinking on my part.

[cma]

Verizon is now doing this. If you opt out, they add new categories of tracking and then opt you back in:

> Custom Experience is a rebrand/spinoff of Verizon Selects, which customers were automatically enrolled into when they used the Verizon Up rewards program. Verizon Selects is being rebranded Custom Experience Plus (and anyone who was previously a member of Verizon Selects automatically gets moved to the new Plus program) and the standard Custom Experience program is being branched off of it, which allows the company to track many of its customers’ data use who do not actively opt-out.

Google's move feels similar. At least do a prompt of the user if you think they would want to opt in. Don't just opt them in automatically on your own.

[sharken]

If enough users feel bothered by this i hope Google reconsiders.

Don't ever change a users opt-out preference, instead give them information so they can decide on their own.

But Google knows very well what happens if they do this - almost nobody will opt-in.

[tedivm]

There really should be more personal culpability, at least on the exec team and board of directors, for things like this.

I also hope Google gets sued in Europe over this. I live in the US and work for a European company and I'm reasonably sure they're going to be super pissed off about this.

[IgorPartola]

Is it possible to sue executives and project managers involved in this decision directly in civil court? I imagine quite a few have juicy enough salaries that it would be nice to take a bite at them.

[tedivm]

The entire point of corporations is to shield liability from the people inside the corporation from civil damages.

[lobocinza]

A. Google a multi-billion dollar company does things that impact (billions?) of paying users without caring about consequences.

or

B. All those things were considered and in the end the executives though it was worth the backlash and the risk of paying a fine.

[flerovium]

"Please reconsider" is the wrong tone. One might as well ask an abuser to "please reconsider" abuse. Closer to the point might be, "Your actions are unethical, illegal, and I will gladly join the class action that results from this."

[wintermutestwin]

>Please reconsider.

Isn't the point of Google's current valuation that they are stealing as much data as they can to feed their nascent AI in the hopes of spawning the best masses manipulator? Why would they reconsider their overarching business model?

[dandellion]

Linkedin does the same thing with email subscriptions every six months. I wish it was made illegal and companies got fined for pulling this crap.

[marssaxman]

This is why I deleted my linkedin account 10+ years ago.