Scroogle
 screenshot of Scroogle as of 2008-10-14 | |
Type of site | Search Engine |
|---|---|
| Available in | English |
| Owner | Public Information Research, Inc.[1] |
| Created by | Daniel Brandt[2][3] |
| URL | http://scroogle.org |
| Commercial | no |
| Registration | none |
Scroogle is a web service that disguises the Internet address of users who want to run Google searches anonymously.[4] Scroogle also gives users the option of having all communication between their computer and the search page be SSL encrypted.[5]
The tool was created by Google critic Daniel Brandt,[2][3] who was concerned about Google collecting information on users, and set up Scroogle to filter searches through his servers before going to Google. "I don't save the search terms and I delete all my logs every week. So even if the F.B.I. come around and ask me questions I don't know the answer because I don't have the logs any more," he said "I don't associate the search terms with the user's address at all, so I can't even match those up."[6]
Traffic has doubled every year and as of December 2007, Scroogle had passed 100,000 visitors a day.[7]
Besides anonymous searches, the tool allows users to perform Google searches without receiving Google advertisements. There is support for 28 languages[8], and the tool is available as a browser plug-in.
See also
References
- ^ "PIR Staff Box". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ a b c "WHOIS - scroogle.org". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ a b "Fed up with Google? Try Scroogle.org: Powerful search tool without privacy violations". WorldNetDaily. 2007-06-04.
- ^ Bray, Hiawatha (2006-01-21). "Google subpoena roils the Web: US effort raises privacy issues". The Boston Globe.
- ^ "A note about SSL: How Scroogle's SSL option protects your privacy". PIR. 2008-06-07.
- ^ Stonehouse, David (2005-06-18). "Searching for gold". The Age.
- ^ Rush, Dominic (2007-12-16). "Fears mount over internet privacy: Google rival Ask.com is promising to wipe out people's search records within hours. But do the data really disappear?". The Sunday Times (UK).
- ^ "Language Support for Scroogle". Retrieved 2008-06-25.