You must then learn how to remove all of their cookies from your devices, and use non-Google products and applications, including Chrome, Google Plus+, and so forth. Each browser's method is different. Then there is the problem of supercookies, which can actually resurrect cookies you've deleted. is a website that yanks most cookies (I haven't checked it exhaustively) and includes SuperCookies. SuperCookies act as “agents" for various tracking bloodhounds, and seemingly unrelated cookies can re-appear by magic if just a few of them do. It's subterfuge to keep you tracked. Tracking is money.

Once cookies are gone, you'll need a cookie and tracking blocker. I chose an application called . Ghostery blocks trackers, adware cookies, and most of the barnacles. It's made by a maker of barnacles, and so far, has been faithful in blocking undesired cookies in my experience. Ghostery is a browser application that works with many browsers, and slows down response noticeably. The response slows because as each web page is loaded, it's examined for the scripts and destinations associated with ads, trackers, and so forth. It has the ability to foil and largely fool the web page into doing no evil on your machine, while not giving up any information regarding the user, machine, browser, etc. Light testing has shown it to be effective, and Ghostery is updated frequently to allow new and novel tricks to be thwarted.

The warning here is that although Ghostery seems to work, it can cause certain web pages that depend on tracking to suddenly not work. If you use Discus, as an example, you must turn it back on by adding an exception for your site. I have no idea what Discus does with the data it garners. Sometimes Ghostery lights up with a dozen or more tracking elements on every page I load from some sites. A page reload (including going back to a page) will trigger Ghostery all over again. Some pages simply crawl because of the extra tracking junk Ghostery must stop.

Day five: Android

First some background is needed. At least for now, ridding one's self of Google doesn't mean you have to give up your Motorola mobile phone. As Google now owns them, I'm guessing that Motorola's phone policies will change. I own a Motorola Droid 2, which runs Android. Verizon conveniently updated the version, wiping out the mods that I had done to the phone. You can use Android without Google, but doing so is tough, and there's work to do. Having done so, your privacy and dignity will be preserved. Lacking these steps and using Android or Google products, your privacy and dignity will be usurped -- by your permission.