Google ups privacy in web analytics, offers users opt-out browser add-on
Published May 26, 2010
As the line between personalization and privacy becomes increasingly blurred, Google announced Tuesday that it is transforming its Google Analytics feature to lean toward the latter side, the company announced on its Analytics blog.
In what Google called "additional steps to provide even more choice and transparency for both website owners and users," the company has made two changes. The first, the release of the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, will allow users to block the collection of data from Google Analytics Javascript.
In the second change, Google will allow website owners "to provide an additional level of privacy for visitors to their sites" by allowing them to make their visitors' IP address information anonymous.
"Website owners can now choose to have Google Analytics store and use only a portion of this IP address for geographic reports," said the company in its blog post. "Keep in mind, that using this functionality will somewhat reduce the accuracy of geographic data in your Analytics reports."
Digital marketers may be interested to learn that these changes do not affect Google's DoubleClick advertising cookie, Wired magazine reported, so that level of personalization will remain.