Anti-Gmail warnings

[birchyboy]

I recently started using Gmail and naturally had a look around for info.

What do forum members think of the anti-google site google.watch.org? I'm not particularly bothered about the warnings - Yahoo, Microsoft, et al are all up to the same things.

Anyone know anything else about Gmail which is a bit less biassed?

[Jon M]

If you're concerned about privacy.. don't use webmail full stop.. GMail is the best interface available IMHO, has good contact management and has a good amount of storage.

It's competitors suffer from the same criticisms... and personally I'd rather trust Google than M$ (or other random webmail provider) with my mail

[Stuart]

I have to admit that even if gmail do display my emails to all and sundry. There's nothing that important that gets sent through that account.

Any sensitive stuff, I have them send to my work email, and if they ever need to monitor that (it happens from time to time), I am friends with the only two blokes who have the right access to do it..

[birchyboy]

Thanks a lot for those comments.

I'm not bothered about any of them monitoring or targetting adverts either, but my brother-in-law, who's with PlusNet, is having eggs about Internet and email privacy issues.

[nffc]

At least it's not hotmail, they are so easy to reset the password, all you need is to answer a question.

[mrlipring]

If you're at all bothered about security, you'd buy your own domain and setup email on it, or set it up on a home server. You wouldn't use ISP popmail, and definitely not any kind of webmail.

Having said that, what have you really got to hide? As for the targetted ads, i welcome them, because they're inobtrusive, and they subsidise the best webmail available. Jeeze, if i only had one email address, i'd use GMail.

Originally Posted by mrlipring

what have you really got to hide?

Does anyone *really* expect an answer to that sort of question?

I mean is some guy going to reply "well, actually I don't want anyone to know that I like wearing women's underwear"?!

(There's some lovely T-shirts you can get with logos in big letters saying eg "Nobody Knows I'm a Lesbian!")

[AndrewJ]

I use gmail and have done for ages now and have various mailboxes with them ( and some invites ).

I have read all the anti g-mail stuff ,even had some in my mailbox but I prefer gmail to any Hotmail or Yahoo mailbox.

And most of all NTL's own webspace e-mail thing, I have that forwarded to my g-mail account, interesting fact is I get no virus e-mails.. The moment I use outlook express 6 I have my detector going like mad.

Gmail all the way for me.

[nffc]

Nowt wrong with Gmail. It's fast and the ads pay for it. Something has to.

I use POP3 anyway so I don't see them.

[ikthius]

I think that most of the anti gmail stuff is just someone blowing off steam because it is taking away buisness from the other competitors, like some people who hate firefox, there is/was stuff on the net being anti firefox. And you could also show it to be like the people who are anti microsoft, anti IE etc.

I think gmail is fine, I don't use it fully, because it is not my main email address.

I just wish google could come out with its own messanger application.

ik

[mrlipring]

Originally Posted by Graham

Does anyone *really* expect an answer to that sort of question?

I mean is some guy going to reply "well, actually I don't want anyone to know that I like wearing women's underwear"?!

(There's some lovely T-shirts you can get with logos in big letters saying eg "Nobody Knows I'm a Lesbian!")

The answer i'm looking for is "nothing". Anyone who DID have anything to hide wouldn't use normal webmail, or free (provided) popmail. Anyone who DID have something to hide (and some of us do!) would, i hope, be smart enough to know how to work securely.

[AndrewJ]

Originally Posted by ikthius

I just wish google could come out with its own messanger application.

ik

According to a friend of mine who knows someone within google. That is being discussed but is unlikely .

Would be a great idea though I am expecting a poll to be posted in Gmail inbox's for interest checking.

Originally Posted by mrlipring

Anyone who DID have anything to hide wouldn't use normal webmail, or free (provided) popmail. Anyone who DID have something to hide (and some of us do!) would, i hope, be smart enough to know how to work securely.

Pardon my cynical laughter at this point...!

The words "smart" and "secure" really don't apply to the general public!

[Gareth]

If you pay me loadsa money, you can all have your own email accounts at yourname@chicksdigunix.com - and I promise not to read your mail, well not to read it very often

[AndrewJ]

got something personal...something you dont want anyone to see...then go pick it up and get it yourself...no letters, no phone,, no internet..only secure way..( so long as you dont use credit card )