I think there's a pretty clear difference between Google'ing someone out of curiosity (or anxiety, or to feel close) vs Google'ing someone with the intention of trying to meet them outside of session (or behave in any other kind of way that a therapist would find threatening).

There have been quite a few threads regarding 'researching' therapists online and lots of people do it. I'll admit I Googled mine. Okay, I still do... I agree that it's helpful to look at why. For me, it's trust issues. I'm looking for some reason not to trust T. For example, a big incongruence between who she is in session versus her personal life, which would give validation to my suspicion that she's not being authentic with me. Call it paranoia, or a side effect of trusting someone with very personal information about myself. Though I do find it comfort looking at her webpage.

Now, I'm not one of those who feel bad about it, or need to confess it to T. I know what my intentions are. I'm not trying to hurt her, or insert myself into her personal life. Most of what I found she would probably tell me about if I asked. I think people get into the most trouble with T's when they admit to excessive Google'ing, or home drive-bys (which to me, is big boundary crossing). IMO, it's the action-taking and on-line deception (actions) which are the issue... not 'just looking' stuff.