IntroductionThe use of search engine technology has been an invaluable tool for all users connecting to the Internet. These systems are used by business, education, government, healthcare, and the military, to name a few. Search engines host millions of web pages, documents, images, and other items collected from millions of websites. The information collected on these sites is stored in massive databases where the information is aggregated and indexed. Search engines used special software called spiders to help build a list of keywords. The process of building the spider list is called web crawling. According to Franklin (2000), spiders create links to common websites, indexing the words on their page and following each link found on the site. The information collected by these search engines is collected from information provided by customers or indirectly as a result of information provided by customers. behavior on a website. Many search engines serve advertisements on the sides or in a browser above the search engine. Browser advertisements are tailored to a person's search activity. The method used by search engine companies to capture user data has raised concerns about individual privacy and the sharing of users' personal information. The benefit to consumers is not always conveyed, leaving them in doubt. The Internet is an electronic marketplace in which users' personal information is transmitted and sold to different companies without the consumer's knowledge. This method of processing consumers' personal data has sparked debate. Privacy is the priority. This article will focus on the three major search engine services, Google, Yahoo and Bing. I will give a brief summary of each company mission statement and each group...... middle of paper ......employees - Yahoo News. Retrieved from http://news.yahoo.com/yahoo-lay-off-2-000-employees-132205338.htmlMcCullagh, D. (August 2006). AOL's disturbing insight into users' lives - CNET News. Retrieved from http://news.cnet.com/2100-1030_3-6103098.htmlMicrosoft (April 2014). We're sorry, the page you requested could not be found. Retrieved April 2014 from http://www.microsoft.com/privacystatement/en-us/bing/default.aspxRaskin, A. (June 2013). Terms of Use; I haven't read. Retrieved from http://tosdr.org/Santa Clara Valley Historical Association (2008). Yahoo! Inc. Retrieved from http://www.siliconvalleyhistorical.org/#!yahoo-inc/cr1pYahoo (January 2013). Yahoo Privacy Policy. Retrieved from https://info.yahoo.com/privacy/us/yahoo/details.htmlYahoo (2014). Web beacons. Retrieved from https://info.yahoo.com/privacy/us/yahoo/webbeacons/