Today all the world remembers the tragedy of September 11th, 2001. The Reputation.com team extends its thoughts and prayers to the families of those who were lost, and to the American and allied armed forces now operating abroad in harm’s way.  We wish you a safe return.  This native New Yorker remembers the beauty of the Twin Towers and looks forward to the day in which a new structure stands in its place.  Here in America, there is always hope, there is always a better day if we want it enough.

When you’re as big as Google, even the smallest changes to your website set off a firestorm of debate. So, naturally, when Google increased the size of its search bar yesterday, people took notice.

In an official post to the Google Blog, Vice President of Search Products & User Experience Marissa Mayer explained the change, saying:

For us, search has always been our focus. And, starting today, you’ll notice on our homepage and on our search results pages, our search box is growing in size. Although this is a very simple idea and an even simpler change, we’re excited about it — because it symbolizes our focus on search and because it makes our clean, minimalist homepage even easier and more fun to use. The new, larger Google search box features larger text when you type so you can see your query more clearly. It also uses a larger text size for the suggestions below the search box, making it easier to select one of the possible refinements.

For a side-by-side comparison of Google’s former search bar and the new jumbo version, check out the image below (click for a larger version).

To be perfectly honest, as a user, the new search bar doesn’t do much for me. In fact, for the most part, it’s completely superfluous to my searching experience. As such, it seems clear to me that Google’s real reason for this change isn’t necessarily about improving user experience, but making more money?

Now, I’m not saying that Google is anti-users (the company has always strong praise for its simple interface and intuitive design). Rather, I am saying that for as much effort as they put into designing this bigger search box for users, they put an equal or greater amount of time into designing it for increased advertising revenue. Blogger Dave Jeyes explained how the bigger search box could lead to greater search revenue in an excellent post for the blog, Tech.Blorge.

These changes may seem fairly minor, but where your attention flows, ad search revenue is sure to follow. By making the search box more prominent, users are ever-so-slightly more likely to try a new query rather than thumbing through page after page of results.

The result is not only a quicker way for users to dig through Google’s search index, but also a faster way to deliver Google’s lucrative search ads. Overall that sounds like a win-win for both Google and users.

[...]

Since Google’s revenue comes primarily from search ads, it has been relatively immune to the recession affecting display advertisers. That run could be coming to an end as advertisers’ budgets dry up at the end of the year.

A land-grab for screen real estate could serve as an effective way to offset lower search ad revenue. Likewise the change could be a well-tested way to make searchers’ lives easier when hunting for information on the site.

Does this make Google a bad company? Certainly not (at least compared to some other things we know). Should it affect how individuals judge Google search results? Absolutely.

As Reputation.com CEO Michael Fertik said in his recent foreword to the book, Google Bomb, by Sue Scheff and John W. Dozier, Jr.,

Google is not God. Google is not the First Amendment, and it is not the truth. It is a machine. It may be the best machine invented in the past fifteen years, with myriad benefits for human knowledge and collaboration, but it is still just a machine that operates on rules devised by people. For that reason, it is both inherently fallible and subject to deliberate abuse.

While Google has undeniably changed the way in which people access information, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the information is good or honest or valid. If someone is searching for you or your business online (and they are) it is important that they see what you want them to see, which is why you need to be pro-active in managing your reputation online. For help on owning your Google search results, contact a member of the Reputation.com customer service team today.

A little over a month ago, Reputation.com COO Owen Tripp shared some insight on the problems with behavioral advertising and the steps that were being taken to protect consumer privacy. As of Monday, thanks to Rep. Rick Boucher D-VA,we know just what those steps will be.

According to the Associated Press, Rep. Boucher (who heads the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet) is drafting legislation that will fundamentally alter existing data mining techniques, allowing for consumers to “know what information is being collected about them on the Web and how it is being used, and to give them control over that information.”

Naturally, Rep. Boucher’s legislation has struck a strong chord with privacy activists.

From the AP article:

“Consumers have no idea that they are being followed online and that their information is being compiled into invisible digital dossiers,” said Jeffrey Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, one of 10 privacy groups that recently issued recommendations for lawmakers. “There is an incredibly sophisticated, ever-advancing system for profiling online users.”Chester believes several developments have put the issue on Washington’s radar. Those include the rise of social networking sites that capture detailed personal information, like Facebook and MySpace; Google Inc.‘s acquisition of the Internet ad service DoubleClick Inc.; and the proposed Internet search partnership between Microsoft Corp. and Yahoo Inc., now under review by the Justice Department.

“Online privacy has finally taken off and become a serious political issue,” Chester said. “A perfect digital storm has created momentum toward action.”

Mr. Chester’s points are apt. With the rapid expansion of social media, it is no longer reasonable to expect that one’s information can be kept anonymous online, and that means serious security consequences. Because there are so many data points available for every Internet user, it does not make much effort to tie a person’s Internet identity to their practical identity. A recent article by Nate Anderson of Ars Technica explored this very problem.

Quoting law professor Paul Ohm, the article states:

“For almost every person on earth, there is at least one fact about them stored in a computer database that an adversary could use to blackmail, discriminate against, harass, or steal the identity of him or her. I mean more than mere embarrassment or inconvenience; I mean legally cognizable harm. Perhaps it is a fact about past conduct, health, or family shame. For almost every one of us, then, we can assume a hypothetical ‘database of ruin,’ the one containing this fact but until now splintered across dozens of databases on computers around the world, and thus disconnected from our identity. Reidentification has formed the database of ruin and given access to it to our worst enemies.”

On the other side of the fence, the Internet advertising industry believes that any kind of governmental regulation will be too slow to adapt to changes in technology, which could hinder the economy of the Internet. What they propose instead is a series of self-regulatory measures that evolve with technological developments to meet the needs of consumers. While their points have merit – government regulation of the Internet industry has been notoriously slow and often ineffectual – the most important issue at stake here is protecting consumer privacy, and, unfortunately for Internet advertisers, information that is useful for data mining does not protect consumer privacy.

As Rep. Boucher’s legislation makes its way through Congress, Reputation.com will be here to provide additional insight and analysis. For up to the minute news on Internet privacy and Online Reputaion Management issues, follow Reputation.com on Twitter.

In case you missed it, President Obama’s much-debated speech to the nation’s school children has come and gone. How did it go? Well, aside from the persistent accusations of socialist brainwashing,  reasonably well. According to early reports, kids across the country have taken the President’s advice to “work hard” and “stay in school” to heart. Good for them! Hopefully they’ll take President Obama’s other advice to heart as well.

In addition to his prepared remarks, President Obama spoke with the students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia, for about 20 minutes. When asked by a student how to “become President of the United States,” President Obama advised “Be careful what you post on Facebook.” Who knew the President was such a proponent of Online Reputation Management? (Oh yeah, we did!) Check out the video of President Obama’s sensible social networking advice below.

In all seriousness, President Obama’s advice is not only wise, but essential to finding success in the digital age. If you’re a parent and you want to talk to your children about their Internet use, please download our guide, which was produced in conjunction with the iKeepSafe Coalition.

Whether you’re running for President or not, taking a pro-active stance in protecting your online identity today will surely pay dividends in the future. To find out more about monitoring and controlling your reputation online, contact our customer service team today.

Despite a growing awareness of Internet technologies,  there is still a disconnect between parents and children regarding issues of Internet privacy and online reputation. In a recently released study from Ofcom (the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries) approximately three in ten 7 to 12-year-old participants indicated that “no one has talked to them about online safety.”

While these numbers decreased as the age of participants rose (approximately one in ten 13 to 16-year-old said no one talked to them about online safety), the data shows quite clearly that there is still more that parents can do to teach their children about being safe online. Some of the other interesting statistics from the study (which can be accessed in PDF format here) are listed below.

• 54% of respondents (age 11-16) said that young people needed more advice on “how to retain privacy/not share information” online
• 20% of respondents (age 11-16) said that young people needed more advice on “how to deal with ‘cyber-bullying’”
• 22% of respondents (age 11-16) said that young people needed more advice on “how to avoid inappropriate content”

Here at Reputation.com, we are committed to helping parents better understand how their children use the Internet and why it is important to protect themselves online. Too often, parents and children only talk about issues related to online safety after something has gone wrong. A simple mistake online can be a burden on your son or daughter for years, damaging their chances of getting into college, finding a job, and more.

Don’t wait until it’s too late.

If you would like to learn more about how to talk to your children about their Internet use, make sure to check out this guide, prepared by Reputation.com and the iKeepSafe Coalition.

Hat tip to eModeration, where we first saw the Ofcom study.