Google will half the length of time it holds data linking surfers' IP addresses to their Web searches.

The move comes in response to regulators' concerns, especially in Europe and the U.S., the company said in a blog posting late on Monday.

The search giant's new data retention policy is to render the IP addresses in its server logs anonymous after nine months, instead of waiting 18 months as it has until now. The company said the move is "another step to improve privacy for our users."

Google's global privacy counsel, Peter Fleischer, will explain the move further in a conference call with the European press later Tuesday morning.

The Google blog can be found at: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/another-step-to-protect-user-privacy.html