Updated Google Chrome authorizes without the knowledge of users (Topic)

Chrome 69 has made some changes to its privacy policy. The built-in function of the updated browser logs into the Sync system by default, without obtaining user consent.

For information: the main task of Sync is to synchronize data from various search engine platforms (for example, Gmail mail or YouTube video hosting) with a personal Google account.

As it was before

Despite the fact that the Sync system has been built into the Chrome browser for a long time, its active participation in authorizing a user account did not appear in any way. The owner of a Google account could independently authorize, while all information - search history, bookmarks, passwords, etc. were not tied to his account.

If the user needed to synchronize personal data, for example, between a computer and a phone, the authorization in the Google account took place manually. Until the automatic activation in Sync in the latest version of Chrome, user search history and other personal information were not recorded in any way on the search engine server.

New Chrome Tool 69

After updating Chrome to version 69, the user's personal account is activated by default in the browser after the account owner visits, for example, Gmail. In the future, this leads to authorization already in Sync and the subsequent possibility of transferring activity data in Google Chrome to the search engine server.

There was a misunderstanding among users, many considered the innovation a violation of confidentiality. According to critics, the company simply intends to collect more and more accurate personal data, although such actions lead to a decrease in privacy.

Johns Hopkins University professor - Matthew Greene considers such a Google policy to be the cause of further loss of user confidence. The scientist claims that the user sees a direct link between their personal Google account and the browser, even though the Chrome Sync service needs to be activated separately.

What Google replied

The company explains that the innovations in Chrome 69 and authorization by default do not save information from the browser on the server in case the user does not personally confirm this. According to Matthew Green, the user may well give consent to such actions by mistake.

The position of the search engine is based on the security priority for which the default authorization is performed. Its relevance is especially manifested where there is a joint use of one device by several persons - this reduces the likelihood of transferring browser data from one account to another.

Additionally, Google representatives talk about the convenience for which the innovations were introduced. Company engineer Adrien Porter Felt explains that automatic login to the updated Chrome does not save all user data on the servers. However, Chrome Sync still needs to be activated separately.

The Topic of Article: Updated Google Chrome authorizes without the knowledge of users.
Author: Jake Pinkman