User tracking ad platform now baked into Chrome browser

[Blumlein 88]

Google gets its way, bakes a user-tracking ad platform directly into Chrome

Chrome now directly tracks users, generates a "topic" list it shares with advertisers.

arstechnica.com

Google in an effort to "improve privacy" will now include in Chrome a platform that tracks users to present top topics of interest to advertisers when you visit other sites. Gee, thanks Google.

Note in the article where you can turn it off in privacy and security settings (next to last paragraph in the article). My phone showed me the permissions page for this a couple days ago. I've stopped using chrome except on my Android phone for some time. Even on the phone I use Firefox quite a bit. In any case you might want to turn off some of this tracking or switch browsers. A feature no one wanted, but you are getting it anyway. Enshitification continues at Google.

 

[pierre]

On the business side, Google is protecting its revenue. The internet is tracking you everywhere (from your car or your TV), collecting data continuously. Google is just one of them, Apple, Microsoft etc all do the same. Fun fact: in the past the firewall was to prevent people going in your computer, now you also need to prevent things to go out to Apple or Microsoft. macOS is almost unusable if you disable all the services that calls back home.

On the technical side, this may lead to removing third party cookies which are a disaster for privacy and security. The browser in general is not a safe platform. If you often read https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ then ads tracking is the least of your concerns.

My 2c: focus on security first to protect your privacy.

Some refs and tools:
- Read: car and privacy
- macOS users: you should install Lulu and friends
- Chrome users: you can increase security.

My advice: if you care about your security: buy 2 security keys and use them to secure your computers and your connections to websites.
- Google documentation for activating advanced protection
- MacOS documentation
etc

 

[Blumlein 88]

I read the Mozilla report earlier today on cars and privacy. Not surprised. Not happy, but not surprised.

I have not heard of Lulu, but will check into it. I use Windows, MacOS and Linux at various times.

 

[BDWoody]

Use Tor.

 

[Soria Moria]

That’s why I use Brave. Or Ungoogled Chromium at least.

 

[JLGF1]

If Vivaldi (Chromium) is complicit don't tell me. I've switched too many times already.

 

[Blumlein 88]

If Vivaldi (Chromium) is complicit don't tell me. I've switched too many times already.

No Vivaldi is not complicit. I doubt it will become complicit.

 

[Blumlein 88]

Use Tor.

Brave's Tor browser is convenient. I so far have used Brave if I needed compatibility with some web functions like Chrome. Otherwise mostly Firefox.

 

[dasdoing]

I can't understand why anyone would not use Brave

 

[melvinjames]

Brave here as well (Android phone and MacBook).

 

[popej]

There are many good browsers based on Chromium. On Android I have used Bromite for a long time, now it is replaced by Cromite. Both are open source, de-googled and with adblock. Alternatively I use Mull, which is de-mozilled Firefox. Obviously you won't find these programs on Google Play, you have to look for alternative sources, like F-Droid or directly on github.

I can't understand why anyone would not use Brave

Maybe because they don't trust Brave Software, which is ad company too.

 

[Blumlein 88]

If you want an alternative to Firefox, you can try Librewolf. Not available for phones, but can be used on MacOS, Windows and Linux.

 

[dasdoing]

Maybe because they don't trust Brave Software, which is ad company too.

the ads are totally voluntary and you even get paid if you enable them

 

[RayDunzl]

I can only wonder what use all my data could actually be to anyone.

Advertisements don't seem to phase me when they do appear.

Some go by so quickly I don't even notice what is being pushed.

And the ones that get through tend to be so random...

I can't remember the last time I consciously bought something after seeing its ad.

Maybe it's all intended to be subliminal.

 

[dasdoing]

I can only wonder what use all my data could actually be to anyone.

Advertisements don't seem to phase me when they do appear.

Some go by so quickly I don't even notice what is being pushed.

And the ones that get through tend to be so random...

I can't remember the last time I consciously bought something after seeing its ad.

Maybe it's all intended to be subliminal.

well, marketing pays off for them. we buy the products, we pay the bills. It's not about clicking on an ad, it's about brand building. which cookie you choose in the supermarket? the one you are familiar with. that other one is cheaper and same quality, but you don't take it, cause you never heard of it. Do you have an I-Phone? Why would anybody rationally buy an I-Phone? Is the internet free? Hell-no; it is expensive af

 

[anmpr1]

The browser in general is not a safe platform.

Anyone who goes on line can expect a loss of 'privacy'. Everything has become a means toward and end, which is selling something. Search engines are probably the worst offenders, but it's built into the browser itself. There's an operation called Duck Duck Go which was supposed to offer a level of private browsing, until someone discovered they were sending browsing history to Microsoft.

Microsoft OS is now essentially an advertisement for whatever 'services' they are selling. This became really noticeable to me over the past year. Now I'm getting all sorts of desktop and program pop ups hawking MS this and MS that, 365 days a year. All for an 'easy on the wallet' subscription, plus introductory pricing. Where can I not sign up?

The government may not be able to legally obtain your information by direct spying (sans a warrant--although how would anyone know, one way or the other), but they can just buy your history from Google, or whomever. Or that foreign country that produces all the spyware.

I think the most you can do from a practical point--that is, to make your life a bit less aggravating, is to use an adblocker. That helps remove the bulk of the 'in your face' annoying stuff. Maybe something like MalwareBytes, to stop tracker requests. Possibly helps a little.

Or you can do the Stallman, and just surf the Web in mostly text mode, within an Emacs terminal, which is supposed to have a switch that removes trackers. I know everyone wants to start doing that, in order to be 'free' (as in freedom, not beer). LOL

VPN. Tor. Linux. BSD. Plan 9. You name it. It's all so tiresome...

 

[ahofer]

Does Pi-Hole block it?

 

[pierre]

I can't understand why anyone would not use Brave

Easy. It takes them 2 weeks to do secury patches. That's your window for problems. Chrome has its issue but security wise it is better than average.

 

[maverickronin]

I use Chrome exclusively for YouTube since it usually runs best there and Google already know everything I'm doing on it anyway.

 

[Barrelhouse Solly]

I can only wonder what use all my data could actually be to anyone.

Advertisements don't seem to phase me when they do appear.

Some go by so quickly I don't even notice what is being pushed.

And the ones that get through tend to be so random...

I can't remember the last time I consciously bought something after seeing its ad.

Maybe it's all intended to be subliminal

I worked as a programmer for a specialty retailer that had stores and a catalogue. They got on the internet in 1995. I did a lot of support for mailing list processing and some support for back end processing on the web site. l also designed a green screen UI for a rewards program. I learned quite a bit about what they used to call direct mail marketing. There are two things they do with data. One is to identify groups of people who might buy. The other, which ever improving computer hardware made possible is identifying individuals who are likely to buy. Likely to buy translates to people who are likely to give us money. That's what I don't like. Part of this is my upbringing. I read "The Hidden Persuaders" when I was in junior high shortly after it came out. My dad and I talked about it quite a bit. Around the same time I read Pohl and Kornbluth's "The Space Merchants," a science fiction novel based on Pohl's experiences as an advertising copy writer in the late '40s. It had things like targeted ads that appeared in the air in front of people walking down the street.

I may be paranoid, but I see data collection as spying. One thing ads are designed to do is to promote consumption in general. Even if you don't want the car or appliance in the ad there's a subtext there. In intelligence the word threat means capability. I see data collection as a threat because we have tools that marketers and others only dreamed of 100 years ago. Software and hardware are going to get better. Moore's Law still holds.