Having failing at every market segment where they can't force users to use their products, Microsoft has assumingly resorted to attacking competitors over bogus issues. We today published a story about how Microsoft's attack on Google's privacy policies are bogus. Now, Google has also responded to the FUD spread by Microsoft.

Myth: Google’s Privacy Policy changes make it harder for users to control their personal information.
Fact: Our privacy controls have not changed. Period. Our users can: edit and delete their search history; edit and delete their YouTube viewing history; use many of our services signed in or out; use Google Dashboard and our Ads Preferences Manager to see what data we collect and manage the way it is used; and take advantage of our data liberation efforts if they want to remove information from our services.

Google has clearly stated that users can opt-out of Google's ad targeting as well as prevent Google for logging your search history. Google has in fact consolidated information at one place so it is easier to understand and be controlled by users as compared to lengthy documents full of incomprehensible legal jargons. Users are still in full control as they always were while using Google service.

Microsoft also said that the policy changes have been made to help advertisers.

Myth: Google is changing our Privacy Policy to make the data we collect more valuable to advertisers. [Microsoft]
Fact: The vast majority of the product personalization Google does is unrelated to ads—it's about making our services better for users. Today a signed-in user can instantly add an appointment to their Calendar when a message in Gmail looks like it's about a meeting, or read Google Docs within their email.

So, Microsoft is saying that it has nothing to offer to its advertisers? On the contrary as Danny Sullivan writes: In fact, I can recall at one point how Microsoft was highlighting how easy it was to drag content from its search engine into its Hotmail email system. That’s cross-platform data sharing that Microsoft is raising issues about with Google. Microsoft does the same, but no one runs ad campaigns taking the company to task over it.

Myth: Google reads your email.
Fact: No one reads your email but you. Like most major email providers, our computers scan messages to get rid of spam and malware, as well as show ads that are relevant to you.

Oops! so Microsoft doesn't read your emails? They do. First thing - it's not humans that use your emails. Its automated programs that scan your emails. Every email provider does that. Microsoft does is all the time otherwise how else are they going to filter your messages for spams without reading it? Your own Thunderbird does that otherwise how else will it suggest that you forgot to attach a while while you mentioned it in the email.

The funniest accusation could have been that Google Apps are not safe!

Myth: Google Apps aren't safe, and aren't government-certified.
Fact: Google's Apps are certified for government use because they are secure.

I ironic that Microsoft is talking about security as their products are the very reason the entire insecurity industry aka anti-virus industry exists. Microsoft products cause millions of dollars in loses every year in form of data theft or lost due to in-built insecuritiy.

The massive attack on US companies (including Google) by alleged Chinese hackers was done exploiting the holes in Microsoft products. Microsoft's Windows created embarrassing situation for USA when its Predator Drone system were infected with Windows virus. The agency decided to switch to Linux. So, its 'safer' if Microsoft refrain from talking about security.

Myth: Microsoft's approach to privacy is better than Google's. [Microsoft]
Fact: We don’t make judgments about other people’s policies or controls. But our industry-leading Privacy Dashboard, Ads Preferences Manager and data liberation efforts enable you to understand and control the information we collect and how we use it—and we’ve simplified our privacy policy to make it easier to understand. Microsoft has no data liberation effort or Dashboard-like hub for users. Their privacy policy states that "information collected through one Microsoft service may be combined with information obtained through other Microsoft services."

Microsoft has assumingly tried to paint Google's good intentions as bad moves, which I think are not.