After settling a particularly costly legal dispute, Google has decided to be more transparent regarding the implicit data collection of Chrome’s so-called “private” browsing mode.
Spotted by our colleagues atAndroidFont, Google has changed the disclaimer that appears in Chrome’s new tab page in private browsing. The goal ? Provide additional transparency regarding the collection of information when using this mode, and avoid potential additional legal concerns for Google.
Not so private browsing…
There is a legend on the web according to which the use of private browsing allows you to become completely anonymous when browsing the Internet. If we use the term “legend”, it is because this preconceived idea is obviously false: the user’s activity remains visible to the websites consulted, to the employer or to the educational establishment of which we uses Wi-Fi or ISPs. Private browsing is therefore not that much, even if it obviously allows you not to save browsing history or information entered in forms.
To put an end to any ambiguity, Google has therefore introduced a brand new mention in its latest version of Chrome (Canary 122), in order to make the process of collecting data in private browsing clearer. This statement reads as follows: “ This won’t change how data is collected by websites you visit and the services they use, including Google ” (Or ” This will not change how data is collected by the websites you visit and the services they use, including Google ” in French).
As a reminder, Google Canary is the experimental version of Google Chrome intended for bug tracking, mainly dedicated to developers. This new mention is therefore not yet integrated into the public version of the browser, but should be in the near future.
A direct response to a costly lawsuit for Google
In 2020, Google was sued for violating several federal laws in the USA precisely because of its private browsing mode, the latter not being as “private” as advertised. The firm recently (last December) settled the dispute for a tidy sum of $5 billion, which may not seem like much on the scale of Google, but more than enough to push the company to update its privacy policy. related to private browsing on Chrome.
To avoid potential new legal problems in the future, Google is now being more transparent about the real implications of private browsing on Chrome with regard to data collection, as we have also seen recently. on Android. It is therefore necessary for each user to take this information into account: no, private browsing does not allow you to wander anonymously on the web, quite the contrary. It certainly allows you to hide your history from someone visiting your device, but that’s about it.
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Complete and fluid, Google Chrome has established itself as a free reference for web browsers and is in an excellent position compared to other flagship applications such as Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Edge (formerly Internet Explorer). To complete its Windows, Mac and Linux version for computers, the Californian firm also offers a mobile version compatible with Android and iOS.
Complete and fluid, Google Chrome has established itself as a free reference for web browsers and is in an excellent position compared to other flagship applications such as Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Edge (formerly Internet Explorer). To complete its Windows, Mac and Linux version for computers, the Californian firm also offers a mobile version compatible with Android and iOS.
Source : Android Police via AndroidAuthority
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