I received a call from a client complaining about no longer being able to switch between their gmail accounts (which you normally do by clicking on your avatar in the top right corner of the gmail app on desktop).

After a bit of back and forth, I asked for a screenshot. They sent me a photo of the screen and it became apparent that they were clicking on this new avatar embedded in the browser chrome rather than the gmail app avatar below it.

> what impression do you think normal users who don't follow a niche twitter discussion get?

I imagine they don’t care one way or the other.

My father is a retired biochemist, inventor, and small-business owner. He does not use Twitter.

If he came across this, I expect that he would definitely notice that something seemed unusual. Once it became clear what was happening, I expect he would switch away from Chrome.

How little you think of people.

I think most people have more important things to do than worry about whether Google knows where they’ve been online.

Edit: To clarify, I care about whether Google knows where I've been online. That's why I don't use Chrome. I just don't think most people care.

If it were only that simple.

Now that Google knows, who else can find out? Someone Google trusts? Someone that pays Google enough money?

Lets sell your browsing data to whoever wants to buy it. What kind of risks would that create for you and your family?

> I just don't think most people care.

Every single person I've explained how much data Google et al's regularly collect has cared a lot. My mother's first comment after hearing what Android and Chrome collect was, "Why aren't the in jail?"

Unfortunately, most of these people continue to use Google's services because they often don't have a choice or are not aware of alternatives. Please, actually talk to people outside your bubble and get their actual opinion (which might require educating them about the specifics of what the tech is doing).

I’m sure people at FaceBook said the same smug things until they crossed a line they never saw coming, and now it’s all congressional hearings and “heartfelt” apologies. It’s true, you can dick a lot of people over for a long time, but you’re just breeding backlash. It will come, in waves, and if your history is defined by a kind of arrogant dismissal of their concerns you’ll be screwed.

Yes, but that's because they are uninformed about the humongous amount of data they're voluntarily handing out and how much can be deducted about their day-to-day lives using that data. If they'd know, like - really properly understand, I suspect that they might not be so eager to hand it over.