Snippet: Google’s New Privacy Policy and How It Affects iOS Users ☇

Leo Mirani for Quartz (via The Loop):

By unifying its services on the web, Google strengthened its grip on its users data. But it began to lose its hold, again, as smartphones took off. When not using their phones to talk, smartphone users spend 86% of the time in apps, and just 14% in the web browser. So someone might, for instance, be signed in to check Gmail, but be effectively anonymous to Google when watching videos on YouTube.

Keeping you signed in on all apps fills this gap in Google’s knowledge. But just as importantly, it makes a big difference to how the company measures whether ads—the lion’s share of its business—are working. […]

This change affects only Apple users who have upgraded to iOS 7, the latest version—but that’s 85% of iOS devices. They no longer have the ability to remain anonymous as they watch videos on YouTube or navigate their cities using Google Maps.

Slimy—for every amazing thing that Google does and develop, garbage like this makes me want to avoid their services like the plague.