Google Dashboard is one step towards internet transparency
Knowing what information we reveal about ourselves on the internet is the core of our concerns about privacy online. What does Google know about us? Well, the Google Dashboard can answer this question.
You can see what data is public (or shared with other users) and what information is private. In fact Google Dashboard can be a useful tool to manage your Google account’s settings conveniently in one place.
Google Dashboard is a page that lets you see all the information associated with your Google account: you can manage settings for Gmail, Maps, Adsense, Analytics, Google Calendar, iGoogle, Google Reader, Google Books, Webmaster Tools, Orkut, Google Talk, Google Wave, AdWords, Google Groups, YouTube, Picasa, web browsing history and all Google products you have ever used while logged in to your account.
When I checked my Dashboard, I noticed that I had shared one photo album ‘with everyone’ on Orkut. I didn’t remember having an Orkut account, so I logged in to Orkut and found out that… I was right. Well, it seems I was still sharing an empty photo Album with everyone on Orkut, after all. Check my photos out in the image below 
Is Google Dashboard transparent?
Google doesn’t tell how all this data is used, so the Dashboard can’t be the solution to all concerns about internet privacy issues, especially those related to online activity tracking practices.
Google knows that the Dashboard isn’t enough (yet) and explains more about Server logs, Cookies and Ads Preferences in a useful Google Help article. Go to your Ads Preferences Manager to edit your Interest categories and eventually opt out from them.
Watch the YouTube video below to see how Google Dashboard works.
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