@leo and #stevegibson (and I) strongly suspect that this is a long-term survival thing for #Google. I would say that it's mitigating a future statutory, regulatory, and/or reputational risk because I am a #cybersecurity and #riskmanagement nerd.

/10

So it's significant that @leo and #stevegibson who are #Firefox fanboys and adblocking evangelists have a broadly positive take on #Google #Topics (they still prefer Firefox!).

They suspect that Google sees the writing on the wall. As demands for #privacy online grow louder and legislation follows, Google wants to be prepared, so they're working on a compromise.

/5

#stevegibson and @leo are also kind of ambivalent about #Google and what it does with #adtech and its #monopoly power more broadly - although sometimes it uses its power to push for wider adoption of #cybersecurity best practices all over the web and in the industry.

If you really want to keep up on what #Google is doing and whether it's good, bad, ugly, or all of the above, they're good people to consult.

/4

As for @leo and #stevegibson they frequently engage with issues surrounding #adtech #tracking and #privacy

They *really* know how user tracking works and all the ways in which we are tracked.

Steve in particular is a big fan of #Firefox and adblockers (so am I). This podcast has turned me on to a lot of privacy-preserving tools that I now use regularly and recommend to other people.

/3