How to find out who Google thinks you are from your web history (and how it may even have your s*x wrong)

IT has been said that Google knows more about what you like than your own partner

Now the search giant has given a glimpse on just how much information it has collected - and who thinks you are.

But it seems the famed Google algorithms are far from infallible.

And people taking advantage of the facility that allows the public to view what kind of consumer Google thinks they are have been amused to find themselves listed with the wrong age and even s*x.

Nevertheless, the knowledge that Google works so hard to profile its 350m account holders is bound to intensify the debate about privacy which flared up again this week with the announcement that the company was going to start tracking users across all of its sites, including YouTube.

The detailed personal 'profile' sums up many of a user's interests, along with age and gender.

Google builds a detailed profile by harvesting the history of its account holders' visits to sites in its advertising network.

But your age and gender are decided by those of other Google users who have visited the sites you visit, leading to the mistakes.

One blogger from tech site Mashable found this week that Google's Ad Preferences page assume that she was middle-aged - and a man, simply because her interests included technology and computing.

The profile page, called Ad Preferences, is hidden away inside a settings menu in Google Accounts, but can be accessed directly here.

This sort of in-depth profiling raises alarm bells with privacy activists.

'Consumers have increasingly digital lives and they are developing an unfathomably large data trail every day,' says Rainey Reitman, activism director for privacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation.

'There has never been another time in history where privacy was under the kind of assault it is today.'

You can opt out of the tracking, or manually edit your details. Google also does not store information on controversial subjects such as pornography.

The Ad preferences page came to public attention following a sweeping change to 'privacy policy' which comes into effect on March 1, although the preferences page was launched some time ago.

YouTube data, Gmail information and search data will all be used to build up ever more accurate advertising profiles and also the company claims it will make searches more personalised.

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Google opens Plus social network to everyone

NEW YORK — Google Inc. has opened up its Google Plus social network to everyone after testing it with a limited audience for 12 weeks.

Google said in a blog post Tuesday that it will now let anyone sign up for Google Plus. Previously the service was only available by invitation, though it got easier to join in recent weeks.

The company also added a search capability to Google Plus that will let users sift through posts on the site.

Google Plus is the online search leader's attempt to compete with Facebook, by far the world's most populous online social network with more than 750 million users. Tuesday's upgrades come two days ahead of Facebook's f8 conference in San Francisco, where the company is expected to unveil several new features.

Google also made Plus's "Hangouts" feature —which lets users video chat with multiple people at a time— available on smartphones with front-facing cameras. The feature currently works with phones running Google's Android system. Google says support for Apple devices is coming soon.

A new service called "Hangouts On Air," meanwhile, lets users broadcast their videos online or view these videos as spectators. Google said it's starting off with a limited number of broadcasters. Google plans to host its first such hangout with Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am. on Wednesday night.

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Google Buys Daily Deals Aggregator Dealmap

Despite a flood of new entrants, the daily deals category is still red-hot, as evidenced by Google’s purchase of deals aggregator Dealmap. The acquisition was confirmed Monday; the terms were not disclosed.

Formed in May 2010, Dealmap claims about 2 million users who check in to get access to deals from 450 sources that are organized by location. Users who log in via the website or mobile apps find deals in their area.

“We believe Google provides the ideal platform to help us accelerate our growth and fulfill our mission,” says Dealmap’s blog. “We’re passionate about helping people save money while having great local experiences, and in Google we’ve found the perfect partner that shares this passion, as well as our vision and strategy.”

The purchase comes after Google’s $6 billion bid for Groupon was famously rebuffed last December. By the next month, though, Google was in the process of rolling out its own Groupon competitor, Google Offers, which is now live in New York; Portland, Oregon; San Francisco and Oakland, California. The service will also be available soon in Boston, Austin, Denver, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

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