Google Says You Must Go Public On Profiles Or We’ll Delete You

Google Says Go Public

In an effort to get more Web 2.0 social online Google has an interesting but not surprising side effect: Profiles can no longer be hidden as of the end of this month.

Google is busy crafting its social network named Google+, but has but announced this policy on how it is going to handle user profiles.

From July 31 people that have created private profiles in something like their free Gmail account will be removed by Google unless they switch to public view.

“The purpose of Google Profiles is to enable you to manage your online identity. Today, nearly all Google Profiles are public. We believe that using Google Profiles to help people find and connect with you online is how the product is best used. Private profiles don’t allow this, so we have decided to require all profiles to be public,” added Google.

Google says that it will only require a user’s full name and gender to display on the public profile. Any other information someone doesn’t want the world to know can be edited or deleted.

“If you currently have a private profile but you do not wish to make your profile public, you can delete your profile. Or, you can simply do nothing. All private profiles will be deleted after July 31, 2011,” said Google.

This move comes as part of Mountain View’s ambition to have social products in its search and email products.

Anyone wanting to use Google+ must have a public profile which has at least their full name and gender displaying.

Google’s argument is that providing such details through its service will build trust among members of its social network.

The idea of online identity is currently undergoing a major shift away from the old model of people having a separate account for different parts of a web leader’s online estate.

Google has been at the forefront of this shift event though it has arrived late at the social party – they have set aside the failed Buzz.

Facebook for years has been insisting that user sign up for its private network with their real names.  It has routinely asked users when their accounts are temporarily disabled to give proof that they are who they say they are.

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Posted by David Reel on Jul 7 2011. Filed under Breaking News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.