# Imagine my surprise when I go to Google today (my birthday) and see this. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 22, 2013, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518 "2013-11-22T14:51:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/1 "2013-11-22T14:51:58Z")
[And hovering over it with my mouse, it says “Happy Birthday, Chris [my name]!”](https://scontent-b-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/1460247_10202630806115064_1700159058_n.jpg) That’s just awesome. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/2 "2013-11-22T14:55:30Z")
Boy, that’s a humblebrag if I ever read one. 😉 Happy birthday, kiddo. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/3 "2013-11-22T15:00:01Z")
Happy Birthday! I wonder if it will tell me mine, since I am next week! ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/4 "2013-11-22T15:10:21Z")
Freaked me out a little when it happened last month since I don’t have Google plus and I couldn’t think of any other google linked services that I’d subscribed to. I had forgotten about Chrome. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/5 "2013-11-22T15:39:09Z")
I was the opposite- I have Chrome, logged into gmail, into Google+ etc, and Google didn’t give me a birthday doodle. I was very disappointed. And even though I already happy birthday’d you on FB- HAPPY BIRTHDAY! ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/6 "2013-11-22T15:42:09Z")
I, on the other hand, am amazed anyone would tell Google what their actual birthday was. ---
**Author:** ![tonyfop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/85f322/32.png) [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/7 "2013-11-22T15:44:41Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > I, on the other hand, am amazed anyone would tell Google what their actual birthday was. This. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/8 "2013-11-22T16:00:24Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > I, on the other hand, am amazed anyone would tell Google what their actual birthday was. ? It’s on my Plus profile. It’s not like I e-mailed the bastards and said HEY I’M BORN IN NOVEMBER, ASSHOLES! Out of all of the information they have about me - just think of the search terms alone! - the birthday information is really not a big deal. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/9 "2013-11-22T16:00:44Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > ? It’s on my Plus profile. It’s not like I e-mailed the bastards and said HEY I’M BORN IN NOVEMBER, ASSHOLES! > > Out of all of the information they have about me - just think of the search terms alone! - the birthday information is really not a big deal. This. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/10 "2013-11-22T16:21:00Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > It’s not like I e-mailed the bastards and said HEY I’M BORN IN NOVEMBER, ASSHOLES! On an unrelated note, does anyone know how to recall an email? I’m asking for a friend. (man, I have to wait like almost a year to find out if google knows my birthday.) ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/11 "2013-11-22T20:52:04Z")
Well, that’s the way they get you to love Big Brother. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/12 "2013-11-22T23:27:01Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > ? It’s on my Plus profile. Ah, I understand your problem now. 😛 But I am actually curious. Do you actually use Google+ socially? I honestly don’t know anyone else who does. I know people who have an account for an online business. I know people who got a G+ profile with YouTube rather than an anonymous G+ page. But neither of those really need a birthday. If so, what do you find better about it than other platforms? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/13 "2013-11-22T23:34:16Z")
> [@Idle\_Thoughts](#): > > [And hovering over it with my mouse, it says “Happy Birthday, Chris [my name]!”](https://scontent-b-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/1460247_10202630806115064_1700159058_n.jpg) > > That’s just awesome. I feel the NSA is somehow behind this. But Happy Birthday anyway. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/14 "2013-11-24T01:17:59Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > I, on the other hand, am amazed anyone would tell Google what their actual birthday was. Not only that but that they would be happy that a computer remembered the information. That is just sad. ---
**Author:** ![Zago](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecccb3/32.png) [@Zago](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zago)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/15 "2013-11-24T04:15:38Z")
I still don’t get why anyone would give up their birth date. Google, Facebook, don’t require it. I registered for StumbleUpon - they required a birth date so I gave them a fake one. ---
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/16 "2013-11-24T05:14:17Z")
**Happy Belated-Birthday Idle Thoughts** > [@sailor](#): > > Not only that but that they would be happy that a computer remembered the information. That is just sad. It’s still a nice surprise. > [@Zago](#): > > I still don’t get why anyone would give up their birth date. Google, Facebook, don’t require it. I registered for StumbleUpon - they required a birth date so I gave them a fake one. It’s not a big deal, it’s just my birth date. That said, I don’t have a Google account so I didn’t get a doodle this year. ☹ BTW: I was born on Sunday, August 13, 1961 at 4:05pm EDT in Nashua, NH. I’m a Leo with Uranus in my 8th House. I like cheesecake & Minecraft. I live in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco. Please send me stuff\* for Christmas to make up for all the years you didn’t send me anything.😛 Thank You.😉 \*money ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/17 "2013-11-24T05:14:28Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Ah, I understand your problem now. 😛 > > But I am actually curious. Do you actually use Google+ socially? I honestly don’t know anyone else who does. I know people who have an account for an online business. I know people who got a G+ profile with YouTube rather than an anonymous G+ page. But neither of those really need a birthday. > > If so, what do you find better about it than other platforms? I don’t like Facebook one bit. I was on it for a bit and then just gave up. I like Plus Circles better, I admit - much easier to manage privacy. I don’t really use Plus socially. I use it probably 98% to host my pictures - I never post any pictures of people, but I take a ton of pictures on vacations and it’s super convenient to post them on Plus, so I can access them anywhere. I don’t ever print pictures out, it seems tedious and a waste of paper. The other 2% I admit I follow George Takei and a few friends and occasionally - I mean like 3-4x a year - post on it. As to the other, I don’t really find my birthday as an item that needs to be hidden. I don’t have a lot of information on my Plus account. I just checked, and it’s got the following information: Female Birthday in a domestic partnership Live in Albany That I am currently in college None of which are really secret. In fact, at least two of them I’d prefer people know ahead of time (relationship status in particular). I also like the college one because I have a college circle and thus college people can contact me. Oh, and btw, how judgmental to say it is “sad” to be happy that a computer remembered our birthday. It’s just cute and funny. And nice. It’s like, people think we shouldn’t take happiness from such things. I submit happiness is rare and difficult to find in this world and we should take it where we can, and if that makes us happy, well, great! ---
**Author:** ![Zago](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecccb3/32.png) [@Zago](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zago)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/18 "2013-11-24T06:40:37Z")
It used to be standard: don’t share birth date or mother’s maiden name because either could give identity thieves a leg up. Have things changed so much? My personal info has been accessed a couple of times by companies (The Boston Globe unwittingly leaked 150,000 customers info) through no fault on my part. Thankfully I had given them bare minimum personal info but it was still a hassle to clear up. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/19 "2013-11-24T06:48:50Z")
Well, if the false sense of security makes you feel better… ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/imagine-my-surprise-when-i-go-to-google-today-my-birthday-and-see-this/674518/20 "2013-11-24T07:38:55Z")
Happy Birthday! Sorry I’m late. Hope it was a good one!