The Google Inc. exhibition stand at the Noah Technology Conference in Berlin, Germany | Representational image | Krisztian Bocsi | Bloomberg File photo
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New Delhi: Tech giant and global search engine Google Tuesday released a new feature that allows users in India to create virtual business cards. Called ‘People Cards‘, these are designed to help users build an online presence and also discover others.

Launched only in India, it is not likely to be expanded for the time being. The feature is available on mobile phones and can be accessed in English.

The card can be created in a simple three-step process.

First, users will have to login to their Google accounts on their phones and search for their names on Google search. They can also tap on the ‘add me to search’ option that appears on the page and fill in their names and other details, along with their photographs.

In the second step, people can give details of their social media profiles, links to websites and other work-related information.

In the final step, tap on the ‘save’ option and preview it once before the card is finalised.

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Hours after it was launched, many users started using this new feature.

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One card only per user for better safety

To ensure the safety of these cards and prevent abusive or offensive content, only one People Card is allowed per Google account. All users must authenticate their People Card with a unique mobile number. So for anyone looking to create multiple cards, they will require different Google accounts and different mobile numbers for each.

In a statement Tuesday, Google said, “The new feature is aimed at helping millions of individuals, influencers, entrepreneurs, prospective employees, self-employed people, freelancers, or anyone else out there who wants to be discovered and help the world find them. Starting today, users across India can discover the people cards on their mobile phones, in English.”

The tech giant also said that people can opt out of the cards any time. On exiting, their details will not appear anymore in search.

 

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