Google Chrome’s core business is data mining and while a majority of users came to “google” Google sits on an enormous data-mountain and is selling this information to the highest bidder.
All others do likewise and they interlink and they sell user profiles and earn on clicks. This is all going on in a stealthy way through obfuscated javascripts with multi-user hacks to get a better performance, sneaky web beacons, hidden iFrames and a lot of other techniques helped by technologies like browser and other fingerprinting and geo-location so “every” user on the interwebs is utterly and completely transparent nowadays.
So, yes, Google is a big player there, but your hoster may be doing it, a website you are visiting, your ISP, etc. etc.
I for instance work Google Chrome via Privacy Guard and a couple of extensions to diminish tracking. I tweaked the browser quite to my liking.
Cache cleaning via Click and Clean is quite effective. A pity is that there is no access to deeper layers of the browser build like as with firefox, and api’s are Google’s and a lot there has not been made available. It is also shown that Google Chrome is not very fond of ad-blockers (it will cost a lot of effort to let an adblocker function on a Google driven smartphone, because ad blocking is hampering Google’s core business).
We can point the finger at Google but all are into it, a question of the pot calling the kettle black (see image).
Google also made the Internet a safer place with Google Safebrowing and Unmasked parasites and their active browser security technology,
Because Google pays very well to be there.
For example Google pays millions to be default search engine in Opera and Mozilla Firefox and to have their “features” like geo location or safe browsing On. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefox#Google This is nothing new. And if Google wants more something that gives them precious information Google buys it (for example Recapcha service).
I’m surprised that you’re are surprised… today, while it’s many years now.
I am not too sure of Google paying, esp your info on Firefox default search engine. If you look closely there are other search engines in the dropdown and any silly software worth its name can also stealthily (example speedbit) install itself there and become the default engine. Google is at the top and hence its place in the order and it instead serves Firefox.
Coming to the core issue , it is not between agreements between vendors. AVAST is a security software and is supposed to be above board especially with its choice of partners and cannot in any way associate with anything/anyone which could possibly be even a remote intrusion into the user/user habits.
Heard of AVIRA (supposed to be at one among the top antivirus few years ago). Now they are in dumps thanks to the first unwise move of promoting a known ad spyer software with their program.