For some time now, when loading portableapps.com, there will be a (more or less secret) connection to the Google website (IP 173.194.69.95), circumventing any blockers (like "Ghostery", "Disconnect", etc.). I don't want Google to know about every website that I visit and that it, unluckily, has managed to infest ;-). What's the deal?
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Half the internet is connected with Google nowadays. There's googleapis, googlesyndication, google-analytics, even googleusercontent... All of which are found on this website as well. It's a matter of ease of use and implementation to the webmasters, since Google provides the services for free, these also save server load in both bandwidth and processing, and are a lot more secure than some home-brewed scripts would probably be. Not to mention that they excel at what they do (google-analytics one of the best services for web analytics, googleapis arguably the best for script libraries etcetera).
For privacy concerns, have you thought about doing your "safe-from-Google" browsing in another browser or profile?
There are ways of controlling to what websites connections are made, some excellent addons for Fx and Seamonkey such as RequestPolicy, and NoScript and AdBlock Plus, but these can break sites for you if you just blindly block everything.
PS: what you are seeing is probably the new fonts on PA being downloaded.
My posts are old and likely no longer relevant.
I know all that, that's exactly WHY I block Google everywhere (especially all its hidden services that keep connecting to Google in the background).
I don't mind separate webmasters knowing about my data, but I mind my data also being collected in one central place (Google).
As mentioned, none of the usual blockers and add-ons (also two of those that you pointed out) prevent that specific Google connection. I manage to block it, though, with an IP blocker (PeerBlock together with the "Search-Engines" blocklist).
It looks almost like it might be a nasty trick to circumvent blocking. At least the site still loads fine (unlike very few others that won't, if you block Google).
They likely don't block it because it's an external font loader. Google hosts open licensed fonts for all sites to use. We use one.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
I'm a privacy freak myself (even went so far as to delete my google account the other day). I believe RequestPolicy blocks google just fine. Just start with a fresh list and add IP's as you go.
Request Policy is a real fine and commendable add-on. For lazy me it was a bit too much work to keep adjusting it all the time. With my many other blockers already active, it's also a bit of overkill. But I trust that it will reliably keep blocking the mentioned connection.
Just found that adding "fonts.googleapis.com" to the HOSTS file also successfully blocks that connection attempt. (Useful to block it globally and not only on, e.g., portableapps.com)
Keep in mind that that will cause some issues with some websites, of course, since it isn't just adds or tracking you are blocking but an integral part of the design of a website.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
No big deal. If a website won't load or break or anything only because I block Google, that website is history for me.
Google's paying you up to $25 bucks to let them track every website you ever visit!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/08/google-screenwise-project_n_126...
I don't mean to brag, but I saw this coming years ago, as I'm sure many others did, too
As this comes in the form of an opt-in I have no problem with this tool. It's the fact that people nowadays have no option to opt-out anymore. Or that I'm forced to change my WLAN name to opt-out in the case of wifi data collection.
But, but, Google does no evil, so its ok if they just follow me around,.... right? Even if this is true. There are multiple scenarios in which the data can still be abused. A google hack (wouldn't be the first time), or some right-wing nut-ball could be president some day, demand access to the all the data and go on some kind of liberal-communist-terrorist which hunt. What about google loosing to the competition in 5-10 years and having to sell itself (including your data). Who gets control then? The same goes for Facebook and other related services by the way.
Anyway, I think people are looking at privacy with their short-term go(o)ggles on while they should be looking at history and see what could go wrong on the mid- to long term.
me, being a gruftie, all this google is also very suspicious.
I remember, sometimes early 80ties, a man was arrested and subsequently prosecuted, because he did write down (in a paper notebook) simply which person did read which newspaper.
Yes, this was considered a crime then here in central europe.
Today most people are proud to announce the whole world not only what they read, but also whom they write letters and whom they talk to and so on.
30 years change people so much?
Otto Sykora
Basel, Switzerland