This image was lost some time after publication.

Since Google began openly logging your search history, navigating the Internet has become an ever-creepier proposition. Anonymity, for the most part, is feigned. Your privacy is an illusion. And with behavioral marketing seen as the holy grail of online advertising, it won't be long before someone rips open and sells your history of search requests — it'd be as exposing as, say, revealing the racier parts of your Netflix queue. This site's editor, for example, certainly doesn't want Google knowing how often he searches for topless photos of Jakob Lodwick. (Oh puhleeze. So not my type. -Ed.)

CNET has lifted any delusions of privacy with its search-engine roundup, which reveals just how secure our search habits are.


Based on CNET's data, the superparanoid should switch to Ask.com. It retains your data for mere minutes and deletes all identifying characteristics. Google, surprisingly, is still a safe bet. It's AOL, Microsoft and Yahoo who you need to watch out for — despite Microsoft's boasts of privacy. This search triumvirate hangs onto your data for over a year and will sell ads against your profile. At last, a reason to use Ask beyond finding Jesus.