Google’s Scary Opt-In: Indexing Your QuickBooks Information

Here’s something that’s not new, but that is slightly disturbing: QuickBooks 2007 offers users the option to allow Google to index their QuickBooks information in order to automatically generate suggested AdWords for the user’s business.

The indexing option apparently scans the QuickBook user’s inventory in order to suggest the best terms for advertising.

While I’ve known about Google’s partnership with Intuit since it was announced last fall, I wasn’t aware that Google was asking users to index their personal records. I’m sure it’s a time-saving option for QuickBooks users, especially those who aren’t familiar with AdWords. But the idea of Google indexing information that’s in my personal financial records, even if it’s to help me sell more tchotchkes, is a bit scary.

Google announced its partnership with Intuit last year. The partnership places links to several Google services in QuickBooks 2007. QuickBooks 2007 currently allows customers to automatically list their businesses on Google Maps, create and manage ad campaigns with Google AdWords, and post their products to Google Base. Google Desktop is also available through the QuickBooks interface.