For one percent of Chrome users, Tracking Protection is now available.
Years after it initially unveiled its Privacy Sandbox initiative, Google has just completed the process of disabling third-party cookies for one percent of Chrome users. A random one percent of Chrome users throughout the world will have their cookies disabled on January 4, according to an announcement made by the business around the end of the previous year to start off the process. According to Gizmodo, the fact that Chrome holds more than half of the market share for browsers worldwide indicates that Google has removed cookies from 30 million users’ computers.
People who are a part of this rollout will receive a notification when they activate their browser informing them that they are among the first to experience Tracking Protection. In addition, it emphasizes that Tracking Protection prevents websites from employing cookies from third-party sources in order to monitor users’ browsing behavior. Due to the fact that this rollout is likely to cause certain websites to become inoperable because they have not yet adapted to a change that will have an impact on the majority of people who use the internet, Google will give users the ability to temporarily re-enable third-party cookies. They are able to disable the new function by clicking on the eye icon that is currently located on their browser bar when they want to do so.
In accordance with what its name suggests, the Privacy Sandbox initiative was developed by Google with the intention of providing an alternative to cookies that will enable marketers to show advertisements to consumers while simultaneously protecting their privacy. Advertisers are able to utilize this information to match users with advertisements that are relevant to them. It does this by assigning users to groups based on their interests, which are determined by their most recent browsing behaviors. All of the data and processing will take place on the device itself, and Google claims that it will store user interests for a period of three weeks. The approach is intended to be less intrusive than cookies. Regulators have taken notice of the proposal because they are concerned that it may result in the firm being even more dominant than it already is without the project. On the other hand, assuming everything goes according to plan, Google will proceed with the rollout of Tracking Protection over the next few months until it has permanently removed third-party cookies for all Chrome users by the middle of 2024.