Google is finally starting to block third-party cookies for internet users after years of delays, opposition and regulatory wrangling.
To begin with, only a random 1 percent of Chrome users globally will get a new web browsing feature called Tracking Protection. The update will restrict third-party cookies by default on websites, limiting their ability to track people across the web. Third-party cookies are those that are put on the site the user is looking at by someone other than the website operator.
How does Chrome Tracking protection work?
If you’ve been chosen for the trial, you’ll see a notification when you open Chrome on either desktop or Android, so it sounds as if iPhone users will sit out the first stage of the rollout.
If things go wrong, or if a website is behaving erratically, you’ll have the option to re-enable cookies by tapping an icon in the Chrome address bar.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small files that are downloaded to your computer that store information about your internet activity. They are typically used by websites to store things like your preferences, to keep your shopping items stored in your cart or to keep your details secure in online banking.
Countries including the UK have passed laws that require websites to clearly inform users when they are using cookies and to get their consent.
When will Google phase out cookies?
Google has repeatedly pushed back its deadline to banish third-party cookies amid opposition from advertisers and regulatory scrutiny in the UK. If everything goes according to plan, it currently intends to nix them for everyone by the second half of the year.
What is the Privacy Sandbox?
Ultimately, Google wants to replace third-party cookies with something called the Privacy Sandbox. The new approach is designed to make web browsing less invasive by placing users in large pools of people with similar interests, without identifying them.
The UK’s competition regulator previously secured legally binding commitments from Google to ensure the change would promote competition, protect publishers and also safeguard consumer privacy.
Google could face more regulatory hurdles if the watchdog decides that those guarantees have not been met.
