In a rare move from Google, Search Liaison Danny Sullivan has responded directly to negative claims made by DuckDuckGo.
Sullivan responded to a tweet from DuckDuckGo in which a video was shared that contains “five good reasons” why users should stop using Google and Facebook.
Most people now know companies like Google & Facebook collect & sell your data. Yet some people still think, "So what? I have nothing to hide." Here's five compelling reasons to tell them why your privacy is worth more than you think!https://t.co/r7xERPuIdv pic.twitter.com/JRjRmALof5
— DuckDuckGo (@DuckDuckGo) August 27, 2019
Those five reasons are as follows:
- Hyper-targeted ads
- Propaganda and discrimination
- The filter bubble
- User data is saved and shared with third-parties
- User data is sold to advertisers
Sullivan once again took DuckDuckGo to task for its claims that Google creates a “filter bubble,” just as he did when this claim was made last year.
In his response, Sullivan states:
“RE: “filter bubble” claim, we don’t at Google “manipulate your search results” based on what we “think you’ll click on.” Nor are search results “different from someone doing the exact same search at the same time,” as the video claims.“
Sullivan points to a tweet he published last year showing that DuckDuckGo can also return different results to different users who search for the same thing at the same time.
This week Duck Duck Go claimed Google had a filter bubble problem, because sometimes results were slightly different. Using its method, these screenshots of the same search on Duck Duck Go in normal and private browsing modes would mean it has the same filter bubble issue… pic.twitter.com/iWCpZ3eYi9
— Danny Sullivan (@dannysullivan) December 6, 2018
A Twitter user pointed out that Sullivan only addressed one of five claims made by DuckDuckGo. In fairness, Sullivan only spoke to the claim that’s directly related to the area he works in.
If users want more control over how much data is collected by Google, Sullivan points to a new tool that automatically deletes location history and activity data.
I work for Google Search to help provide information about how we operate, so I'm speaking to only this part that's in my area. But somewhat related, we have new tools that let people automatically delete data: https://t.co/OHv7Ro4X2a
— Danny Sullivan (@dannysullivan) August 28, 2019
DuckDuckGo has yet to respond to Sullivan’s tweets.
