Google plans to keep third-party cookies in its Chrome browser after years of pledging to phase out tiny packages of code designed to track users across the Internet, Reuters reports.
Google PHOTO: Archive
The major reversal of the company’s plan comes amid concerns from advertisers – the company’s biggest source of revenue – who said the loss of cookies in the world’s most popular browser would limit their ability to collect information to personalize ads, making -are dependent on Google’s user databases.
The UK Competition and Markets Authority has also analyzed Google’s plan for fears that it would hinder competition in digital advertising, writes news.ro.
“Instead of opting out of third-party cookies, we’re introducing a new experience in Chrome that allows people to make an informed choice that applies throughout their web browsing and can adjust that choice at any time.” “, Anthony Chavez, vice president of the Google-backed Privacy Sandbox initiative, said in a blog post.
Since 2019, Google has been working on the Privacy Sandbox initiative to improve online privacy while supporting digital businesses, with a key goal being the phasing out of third-party cookies.
Cookies are packets of information that allow websites and advertisers to identify individual Internet users and track their browsing habits, but they can also be used for unwanted surveillance.
In the European Union, the use of cookies is governed by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which stipulates that publishers ensure the explicit consent of users to store their cookies.
Major browsers also offer the option to delete cookies on demand. Chavez said Google is working with regulators such as the UK’s CMA and the Information Commissioner’s Office, as well as publishers and privacy groups on the new approach, while continuing to invest in the Privacy Sandbox program.
The announcement caused mixed reactions.
“Advertising stakeholders will no longer have to give up third-party cookies”eMarketer analyst Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf said in a statement.
Lena Cohen, a technologist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said cookies can lead to consumer harm, such as predatory ads targeting vulnerable groups.
“Google’s decision to continue to allow third-party cookies, despite the fact that other major browsers have blocked them for years, is a direct consequence of their advertising-based business model,” Cohen said in a statement.
