Chrome browser continues to raise concerns about violating user privacy.
According to GizChina, although the Incognito Mode page has been updated, Google Chrome still tracks and collects your activity data even while in this mode. This could raise privacy concerns for millions of Chrome users worldwide.
Previously, many people mistakenly thought that incognito mode on Chrome could completely hide their identity when surfing the web. But a recent class action lawsuit revealed the fact that Google still collects users’ behavioral data even when they are anonymous.
To resolve this $5 billion lawsuit, Google and the plaintiffs have agreed to terms to end the lawsuit, which will be filed later this January, and receive a final judgment at the end of February.
Accordingly, Google has approved changing the message displayed on the browser when users turn on incognito mode to avoid misunderstandings. The new notification reads: “Other people using this device won’t see your activity, so you can browse more privately. However, this doesn’t change how websites and services that they use (including Google) collect data. Download lists, bookmarks, and reading list items are saved.”
This announcement shows that Google has added information about how they and websites still track users in incognito mode. Currently, the new Incognito interface is only available on the Canary version of Chrome on Windows and Android.
In general, incognito mode does not completely guarantee privacy. However, you can still partially protect your browsing activity by:
- Enable third-party cookie tracking prevention on Incognito.
- Use other browsers with stricter privacy policies, such as DuckDuckGo.