Google's new privacy move is a ‘forced’ merger to many

Google's move to consolidate more than 60 individual privacy policies on its products into a single one “that is a lot shorter and easier to read” necessitates a fresh look by users at how they use services such as Gmail, YouTube, Maps, Calendar and Google+, as well as Android phones. The online preview of the new policy, which will go into effect on March 1, notes that Google Chrome and Chrome OS, Books and Wallet continue to have individual policies governing privacy. The significance of the new privacy policy lies in the way it merges online behaviour information across services, for an account holder. There is also a move by the European Union to put in place new privacy rules, which would require explicit consent from users, for companies to collect, store and use personal information.