Google announced Thursday that it will begin its long-awaited massacre of cookies on the Internet starting January 4, when it will block them for 1% of Chrome users, or about 30 million people. This is the first major step in its Privacy Sandbox project, which aims to replace cookies with another type of tracking that Google says is better for your privacy.
For the past 30 years, websites and technology companies have used so-called “third-party cookies” as their primary means of tracking consumers online. Is that pair of shoes you added to your cart three weeks ago following you around in ads across the web? Third-party cookies are likely involved. These cookies allow websites to partner with other companies, including Google and others, to keep tabs on everything you do online. This is great for businesses and terrible for your privacy, because it means many companies can keep a history of all your web browsing.
Instead of cookies, Google has introduced a new set of tools that allow the Chrome browser itself to keep tabs on what you’re doing online. Essentially, this data stays on your device and your browser sorts you into different categories, or “Ad Topics,” as Google calls them. Think “yoga fan” or “young conservative.” Websites can ask Chrome which categories you fall into, but they won’t be able to determine exactly who you are (at least don’t use cookies, there are other less popular techniques).
Make no mistake, Chrome still tracks you and does so in a way that browsers like Firefox and Safari don’t. But most people don’t bother switching browsers, and if nothing else, Google’s newest version of Chrome is a step forward in privacy because it reveals less information about you and that. that you did on the Internet.
“We are bringing one of the most significant changes to how the Internet works at a time when people, more than ever, rely on the free services and content the web offers,” said Victor Wong, Senior Director of product management for privacy at Google. Sandbox, told Gizmodo in an interview in April 2023. “The mission of the Privacy Sandbox team at large is to keep people’s activity private on a free and open Internet, and this supports the company’s broader mission to ensure that information is always accessible to everyone and useful. .”
These Privacy Sandbox cookie overrides are already available on the Chrome browser, but for now it is an optional tool. You can go to your settings and turn them off if you don’t like the idea.
These changes are important because the vast majority of internet users use Chrome, which means that when Google is done killing cookies, they will essentially be dead for good.
If you see a pop-up in Chrome on January 4, that means you’re in the 1% test group of users who have “Tracking Protection” by default, which is what Google calls it. cookie blocking tool. When tracking protection is enabled, you will see a small eyeball logo in the URL bar.
This is a major change in how the Internet works, so there are going to be some bugs. Cookies are not only used for spying purposes, they also track whether you are logged in, what you have in your shopping cart and various other practical things. Google works hard to identify bad cookies and save good ones, but inevitably some things will break at first. You’ll be able to turn off tracking protection on the fly to fix any issues, and Chrome will ask you to turn it off for a given website if it notices you’re having issues.
