Here is why the EFF is unhappy.
To hide their online habits, users should disable several Privacy Sandbox settings in Google Chrome, or they should think about switching to Mozilla Firefox or Apple Safari, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).
Chrome's Privacy Sandbox is neither secret nor isolated. It is a collection of technologies for tracking, anti-spam, analytics, and advertising. Third-party cookies replacement is one of the objectives. The online advertising sector, though, has some reservations about Google's replacement technology.
According to Google, Privacy Sandbox's five main objectives are to combat online spam and fraud, deliver relevant ads and content, measure the effectiveness of advertising, improve cross-site privacy, and restrict hidden tracking. The proposal for Topics, an API for serving ads based on interests inferred from Chrome users' browsing histories, is what the EFF is most worried about.
In response to criticism of Google's proposed Federated Learning of Cohorts (FLoC) method, the topics were introduced. The EFF released a statement saying, "Topics still tracks your internet usage for Google's behavioral advertising."
Themes can currently be found in the Google Chrome browser. Microsoft's Edge browser, which makes use of the Chromium engine from Chrome, is contemplating incorporating some Privacy Sandbox technologies. While "Themes" in Firefox and Safari were rejected by Mozilla and Apple, respectively, over privacy concerns.
The EFF contends that Google shouldn't use the word "privacy" at all. An EFF spokesman said, "Google calls its technology 'privacy,' which is misleading to users. Additionally, he described how users can choose not to participate in "Topics," ad retargeting, or the storage of ad performance data in their browser by advertisers.
For those who stick with Chrome, there are options to turn off themes, retargeting advertising, and to allow advertisers to store ad performance data in your browser. Simply copy this URL link to the page with the ad privacy settings to get started:
- chrome://settings/adPrivacy
The Privacy Badger was also created by the EFF. With the help of the browser extension Privacy Badger, third-party trackers that secretly track your online activity without your knowledge are automatically blocked. Privacy Badger does not use block lists like conventional ad blockers do. Instead, it detects whether trackers are following you by automatically analyzing the websites you visit and blocking them.
Google disputes the EFF's claims, claiming that the organization is fomenting unease. A Google representative stated, "We believe that using data securely can improve the user experience.
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