Following its end of geofencing warrants, Google is rolling out another big privacy change. Its Chrome browse will now block third-party cookies if users want to, making targeted advertising more difficult.
The program will originally only roll out to a small user base before being fully operational by the end of 2024. Third party cookies are those implanted by other websites rather than for those hosting the data themselves. CNET says:
Years after rival web browsers made the move, Google Chrome on Jan. 4 will begin blocking websites from using third-party cookies, the easiest way to track our online behavior as we move around the web.
The browser will block third-party cookies for 1% of users on computers and Android phones, said Anthony Chavez, leader of Google’s Privacy Sandbox project, in a blog post. Google will extend the block to all Chrome users by the end of 2024 under a schedule that has been pushed back several times in recent years.
This can be seen as a shot toward Facebook, whose data collection on other websites helps it build profiles for its own services. Other browsers, such as Apple’s Safari or privacy-centric ones like Duck Duck Go have already disabled trackers for years. NBC News reports:
Advertisers have said the loss of cookies in the world’s most popular browser will limit their ability to collect information for personalizing ads and make them dependent on Google’s user databases.
Brokerage BofA Global Research said in a note on Thursday that phasing out of cookies will give more power to media agencies, especially those that are capable of providing proprietary insights at scale to advertisers.
Google’s reputation as a data hoarder willing to share with advertisers is slowly being reversed. Google’s dominant position in the browser space will ensure Chrome and the Google ecosystem remains competitive.
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