Not thinking, I click on site and start to absent-mindedly scan through all famous court cases listed. Remember, I was originally looking up my old buddy Arlo, now I’m in a world of laws and crime. Well, I come across this crazy looking face: Charles Manson, and for some unknown unconscious reason I click on his court case. I didn’t know much about guy, but maybe because both my parents are x-hippies and he was from their era…

Now I’m spending an hour of my time (and nothing is more valuable than time, except love and peace) reading about gruesome murders of Manson’s Family as his group of devoted followers was called. I didn’t consider myself interested in this sort of evil stuff, and still don’t, as my feeling after experience was one of distaste, sadness and plain wonder as to how people can do these sorts of negative actions.

In end, following absent-minded link trail led me to a place so much darker than where I started. I don’t know if I ever would have spent an hour of my life reading about Charles Manson otherwise. It’s not my cup of tea you know. I’m into peaceful music, humorous novels, Tai Chi and foreign films. This can be taken as a sign that we must be careful, conscious and alert when we are searching Internet. It is such a huge mass of information, and like all things in existence has its dark side as well as its light. Be careful Dorothy, yellow brick link trail can lead to wicked witch as well as wonderful world of Oz.

I've long made it a practice to open browser preferences to clear web history and dump cookies from machines I've used at conference press rooms and internet cafes in dozens of cities. That drops my web mail passwords and online banking sessions from cache, so I don't have to fret over who might be able to retrieve passwords after I'm gone. I do it automatically now every time I use a public machine.

But now I've got to look for Google Desktop Search before I use a public machine and turn it off while I'm using that machine. Grrrrr! You have to take good with bad I suppose. (Right click icon and choose "Exit")

There's a lot to love about Desktop Search but I simply HATE that others can use it to spy on me. I have no doubt that it will be used by both bad guys for identity theft and by nosey snoops and busy-bodies who will be virtually looking over my shoulder in secret.

I'm sure Desktop Search will be used by parents to monitor instant messaging chats, emails and internet travels by their kids and possibly by spouses to check up on their sweethearts. I'm not at all concerned that anyone will use my home machine and Google Desktop Search to check up on me. (Although I've been startled at phrases that turn up in occasional spam from my Outlook in-box from Google Desktop Search results) I'm more worried that people will use it as a spying tool on public computers.

I've also written before on privacy risks of Google online searches in an article on how to protect yourself from Google Reverse Phone Lookup. You can enter any phone number in search box at Google and see owner of that phone numbers' name, their address and a map to their front door! Google seems to be too powerful for its own good sometimes.

Fortunately there is a phone lookup opt-out method at Google, but databases they draw upon pose a bigger problem. I address additional opt-out methods in article (linked below) but it seems impossible to escape determined snoops.

I'll continue to use Google Desktop Search on my home machine and will continue to love tool for my web centered work online to search client emails, documents and previously visited researched web sites. But now I'll be far more wary - on public machines - of bad guys and of Google Desktop Search. Damn those bad guys!