Saturday, October 22, 2011

Your Google searches just got more secure




Worried that your Google search queries and results could somehow wind up in the wrong hands when you use an unfamiliar Internet connection? I certainly am — mostly because my face would be permanently red if anyone could see some of the things I've searched for.

Thanks to a tiny change made by Google on Tuesday though, our nightmares don't need to be filled with search bars anymore. (I'd suggest looking into 90s horror flicks to fill your nighttime terror needs from now on.)

What's the change Google made? It's simple: The search engine giant will now redirect any signed-in users to https://google.com instead of http://google.com. That little extra "s" means that those users will be using a more secure version of the website and that their search queries will be encrypted.

As Google explains, this extra bit of security is "especially important when you’re using an unsecured Internet connection, such as a Wi-Fi hotspot in an Internet cafe." (Mind you, there are plenty of other things that you should worry about if you're using a potentially shady Internet connection ... )

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