Did you know that
Google uses your previous searches and browsing history to ‘personalise’ your
results? This means there is a good chance that when you search for something
you will get a different set of results to everyone else. This is because Google filters your results
to show you the ones it thinks suit you best.
Even if you’re not signed into an account Google tracks
where you have been on the internet. It
then uses this information to alter your search results to show you things that
are related to your location and your interests.
This is not always a bad thing. For a lot of searching you do it is helpful
when Google ‘remembers’ your interests and pulls relevant sites higher up your
results list. However, when searching for a new topic (e.g. for an assignment) you don't necessarily want Google to use this information when compiling your
results.
TED talk: Beware online "filter bubbles"
There are some steps you can take to make your searching
more ‘neutral’.
Step One
Make sure you are not signed into a Google account.
Step Two
You can use a private browser window, or incognito if you
are using Chrome.
Internet Explorer Ctrl+Shift+P
Chrome Ctrl+Shift+N
FireFox Ctrl+Shift+P
Step Three
If
you want to take it a step further you can delete your browsing history.
Internet Explorer Click
Tools > Delete Browsing History
Chrome Click on the button on the right of the
address bar > History > Clear Browsing Data
Firefox Click
Firefox > Preferences > Clear Your Recent History > Clear Now
(Ensuring you tick ‘browsing and download history’ and ‘clear cache’)
