Who Controls the Network? Google and the Issue of Privacy

Being one of the top three companies in the world according to Interbrand's Annual Report, Google is   one of the internet organizations who "controls" the network so to speak. Google has faced heavy scrutiny for not protecting user's privacy as they should. That being said, it is possible for users to take an active part in protecting their privacy by changing privacy settings on their accounts, especially if they feel that they do not want to share information with anyone besides themselves. The case study presented in class looked into a specific case known as "United States vs. Google", a case in which the FTC filed against Google for violating user privacy on Google's social network Buzz as well as on Apple's Safari. The FTC eventually won the case which is said to be the largest they've won in history. Google has also been under fire for suspected ties with the NSA and allegedly spying using student apps (Google Apps for Education), but so far no lawsuits have been brought up on either issue.
Google is a for-profit organization, and while it is important for them to ensure user privacy, taking extra steps where necessary, they are also a company who focuses on profits and a lot of those profits comes from advertisers with tailored ads directed towards specific subgroups that Google finds for them.
The important takeaway from this message is that there is a way to ensure your individual privacy by changing personal privacy settings available through Google, but also to enjoy the many quality services Google has worked hard to provide their users, keeping them in top-tier status and thus one of the many "controllers" of the network.