Several weeks ago, our class had a homework assignment on search engines, and how some search engines filter our search results. One of the most well-known search engines that does this is Google, which filters our search results and click patterns. Well I came across a search engine that is enhanced by Google, and on their home page, it claims to be “the world’s most private search engine.” So I tried to use the search engine, and sites from my search results appears to be quite similar to those from Google. For example, when I searched the term “information science,” sites such as Wikipedia, Collegeboard, and Cornell were at the top of the search results.
Check the website out: https://startpage.com/eng/?&hmb=1
What do you think about this “private” search engine?
Something that makes me nervous about sites like these is that they claim to be private. Like our professor says about the images of snap chat, the searches done on Start Page are somewhere too. I think that the people behind it could really have a lot of inapropriate/unsafe searches being done on the site because people think they are totally private. The people who have access to these searches done and other type of information, could really use it to negatively impact the user. Much like a breach on a different website, like Ashley Madison, information that people once trusted to be private could be leaked in a matter of seconds.
Everyone wants privacy these days. It is demanded more and more, especially on the web. I’ve always used Google, and I still will probably always use Google in the future, but it is really great knowing that there are other options out there. Also, the fact that this is enhanced by Google definitely makes it a more reliable search to go to. I would try to use a search engine like this when I am tired of being bothered by all of the extras that come with using Google. These include ads from things that I have previously searched on Amazon or any other website for and spam ads. They do get annoying and a search engine like this can eliminate that.
I did do a search for “smooth jazz” in both Google and Start Page, and I will say that the results do vary. Google is directing me to more YouTube videos of smooth jazz and Wikipedia pages regarding jazz music and musicians. What came up for Start Page was more results for free radio stations that broadcast jazz and smooth jazz music. No ads and no annoyances. The privacy is noticeable.
My question for you is do you think that it is better than say a Google or Bing? If not then why?
Privacy is a hot topic in our information society. With the introduction of concepts such as the Internet of Things, many begin to question where one should draw the moral line between privacy and it’s sacrifice for the sake of convenience. There is an inherent draw and appeal in the advertisement of being the “most private” search engine, but something without much backing. With a slew of other search engines, particularly, as you stated, ones like DuckDuckGo, Start Page seems more like a tool to get more visitors to their search engine than a legitimately safer way to search online.
I must admit, I am intrigued by the idea that there may be an engine that can wholly and completely protect my information that feels like it is otherwise flaunted on the internet. However, the plausibility of this idea makes me question it. As you originally said, the search results compared to other engines are near identical. I compared a search result for this engine, Google, and DuckDuckGo and the changes in the results were negligible.
Though the idea of protected privacy is alluring for many, it’s hard to fully fulfill and enact this promise of complete security. Though I can very much see why people would flock to StartPage instead of other search engines were information is apparently left vulnerable. I don’t see myself using it in the future.
Reading this article after our homework assignment, I decided to give it the same test that we gave DuckDuckGo. Search engines, after all, play an integral role in our lives as students and getting the most appropriate results can make a difference. I questioned whether this private search engine would bring different results from the industry leader, Google. I tested three phrases–Penn State, New York Jets, and 2016 Presidential Election–and compared StartPage’s to Google’s results. For the first phrase, Google brought several ads, videos and articles on the most recent football game, and then the university’s main website was found. In comparison, StartPage first result was the http://www.psu.edu website and the following links were solely about Penn State as a university, not like Google who had several about the football game and football players. In this regard, I would give StartPage the upper hand for someone interested in Penn State only as a university.
Secondly, when I searched the New York Jets, the comparison was similar. Google generated video coverage of the game playing with live game statistics. Furthermore, Google had a side box with basic information on the team including head coach, owners, NFL championship, and more. StartPage, meanwhile, provided straightforward links to the official team and sports blogs websites. For this phrase, Google definitely gets the win because of the additional info on the game that first came up. Lastly, the phrase 2016 Presidential Election gave interesting results. Both search engines had the same links with one or two exceptions for the entire page. With that said, the only thing to distinguish the two is Google’s inclusion of a blurb about recent articles and news. These news articles vary from humorous to serious tones and shed some light on recent action on the presidential race, which is gives Google the advantage in my opinion.
Overall, the results from this test with Google and the “world’s most private search engine” demonstrated again that each search engine may yield different links. My personal preference still lies with Google, but if I needed to search for something straightforward, I may consider using StartPage in the future.