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04 February
Google Continues To Profit From Online Fraud
Easier For Angels Than Devils
by
SoftwareGuru
"The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was
convincing the world he didn't exist." - a quote about
perception from the movie The Usual Suspects.
However, in relation to online shopping, we all have our own
preconceived ideas about angels and devils.
Trust and confidence are at the core of any online business.
Unless shoppers believe they can trust a retailer, they will go
elsewhere.
It is why websites will clearly highlight their media exposure,
referencing the logos of respected companies from the BBC to The
Guardian newspaper, as well as Protx or VeriSign Security
Certificates.
In relation to software, here is an easy way to avoid software piracy.
All
official UK Microsoft student discount resellers are listed
on Microsoft.com
Buying Microsoft software elsewhere may prove more trouble than
it's worth.
At Software4Students we regularly post the
latest software information both here on our website as well as
via
Twitter.
You can also visit our
Facebook profile to read testimonials from students and
parents who made big savings having purchased official software
from Software4Students.
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Example of Google Failing Consumers
Whether your antivirus software is
Kaspersky 2010 or Norton, it has become more common to have your
search engine results checked by your internet security
software.
Clearly, the world's most famous and established online security
providers believe that search engines results should not be
viewed with absolute trust.
But what about those search results that appear in the form of
ads?
Anyone searching in Google to buy "Microsoft Office" will notice
the sponsored ads both at the top and at the right hand side of
the page.
UK shoppers believe if they click on one of those Google ads
that they are safe to buy from that website. They are wrong. You
are not always safe.
A recent story by The Times newspaper summed it up with the
title, "Google
is failing consumers by profiting from scam websites".
Google is playing a numbers game and the more traffic it gets,
the more clicks it gets on ads, and the more money it makes.
Why else would it include links to illegal downloading sites and
include torrents in their search results?
If you flicked through a national magazine and it
mentioned where you can buy stolen or counterfeit goods, would you think that was
OK?
What would your response be if the makers of the magazine said,
"we can't be held responsible for our content, we simply
reflect what users want".
Those words are actually from Google - that's their stock
defence.
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Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely
The law isn't helping in this respect either.
26 year old Middlesbrough man making over £10,000 per month
from a music sharing Web site has been cleared of fraud by a
Teesside Crown Court jury after a police raid at his flat halted
his business.
Alan Ellis, the first British man to be charged for illegal
filesharing, said his OiNK music site was "no different to
Google" and
only pointed people in the direction of illegal downloads.
Despite promoting illegal activities and profiting from
them to the point where the police got involved, the
man's successful defence that he is no different to Google
illustrates the absurdity of this problem.
We live in a world where counterfeit groups will advertise on
Google UK,
online shoppers are suffering and Google UK makes £1.6
billion from this country.
On top of that,
Google doesn't pay a penny of corporation tax in the UK as
all European profits go through its Dublin based headquarters.
The UK taxpayer misses out on £450 million.
If it is only fair to add that all corporations do their utmost
to minimise tax payments, perhaps it is only fair to suggest
that the least Google UK can do is to stop showing ads by
companies selling counterfeit goods.
At present, Google is not even remotely trying to stop them.
Being perceived as an angel has its benefits.
Click the link below if you would like to browse our
Kaspersky internet security software.
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Posted by
admin
at
12:35
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Google Continues To Profit From Online Fraud