Submitted 1 year ago by wolf@lemmy.zip to technology@lemmy.world
https://www.theregister.com/2023/09/06/google_privacy_popup_chrome/
Google enables advertisers a look into your browsing history…
“Enhanced Ad Privacy.” That’s the technology that, unless switched off, allows websites to target the user with adverts tuned to their online activities
That’s some Orwellian shit right there.
every day I’m glad I switched to firefox
I may be cursed but I have never experienced any slowdown with Firefox. I never noticed the appeal of Chrome, but have I only used twice in my life…
Firefox felt pretty bloated for me back in 2005-2010 or so, they have greatly improved it though and I haven’t noticed a difference in performance on either Chrome or Firefox.
I use a macbook for work. Chrome is ridiculously buggy and sucking every bit of memory. Firefox is almost as bad. Chrome is really bad when using more than 1 tab. Firefox has rendering issues with jira and git. Chrome compelling locks up when using meet, Firefox is slightly better.
In my opinion all browsers have sucked since 2015. Slow, unresponsive, rendering issues, resource hogs. Overall the browser experience has led me to use the internet less and less. It is not the privacy, it is the basic functionality is not working consistently.
It works really well on mobile, that’s just about all the appeal I can find. Some sites are a bit glitchy on Firefox, but it’s really rare. I keep it around for those occasions. On PC it’s just Firefox and Edge (cuz work).
My company still demands I use Chrome/Edge at work.
At work I honestly don’t care because I’m to 99% only using company internal websites which don’t have any ads on them anyway.
Remember to not make it your problem :).
Use a user agent spoofer like chameleon
So use Edge. I don’t think Microsoft is doing this bullshit.
Every day a new article comes out that slowly convinces me to switch. Chrome’s profile switcher was light years ahead of Firefox last I checked, but I’m going to have to check again and see if that’s still the case and if so, what I can do to cope.
I’ve never left Firefox. Through their redesigns and restructure of available add-ons, Firefox has always been the better option because they’ve always been focused on user options and user privacy.
"I don’t want my browser keeping track of my browsing history to help serve me ads, and I definitely don’t want my browser sharing any function of my browsing history with every random website I visit.”
Then why were you using Chrome in the first place?? This feels very much like “‘I never thought the leopards would eat my face,’ says the head of the Leopards Eating People’s Faces Party.”
Every single product offered by Google is meant as an ad delivery method to increase their balance sheet. I’m honestly shocked by the people who are shocked when Google takes steps that are meant to increase ad delivery when that’s always been Google’s ultimate goal.
Firefox is the superior browser to all of these by far
If you’re frustrated with Firefox you could give Brave Browser a try. The devs forked off of Chromium and removed all of the tracking that Google wants in there. It comes pre-loaded with all of the Ad-blocking features I use in Firefox as well, so no extensions needed for that. Also you’ll still be able to use the Chromecast feature if you really want to go in and re-enable it.
The only thing you’ll want to do is to switch the Homepage off and probably disable the icon at the top for enrolling in their ad rewards program (which handles the problems that a lot of users here have with Brave).
Firefox + uBlock Origin is a godsend. Shout outs also go to DuckDuckGo and the Privacy Badger add-on
Fwiw, my experience with Firefox has been so good that I’ve started using Pocket and Thunderbird as well (both also developed by Mozilla). There’s a bit of a learning curve, but resources are easily found online, and the privacy and customization benefits easily outweigh the hiccups, imo
Why not just use Firefox (while you still can …)
I’ll ready raw html before I use Chrome.
You’ll read html sure, but will you read CSS? shudders
Why, will you soon not be able to?
I think they’re just referring to FF’s small market share.
Firefox’s user base is apparently been dwindling for a long time now, so the possibility of this browser shutting down due to not having enough funds is getting higher and higher each year. At least, that’s how I interpret it.
Donated to Mozilla foundation cuz this
Can’t donate to them considering how much money is wasted on their shit ceo.
Even then, I’m sure there’s a litany of other things that they think they need but they don’t. I notice the bigger corporations become, the more justified they feel in wasting resources.
This was overwhelming rejected by everyone, including Microsoft, Mozilla, Safari, and others. It’s universally disliked, and Google knows this, but they intentionally know they’re abusing their monopoly to push anti-consumer bullshit.
It sure would be nice if the US still pretended to care about consumers and breaking up monopolies.
I was born way after that may have ever happened, so sounds more like a fairy tale to me
The solution to breaking up monopolies is nationalization.
I opened the browser at the library to print a pre employment drug screen form today. The browser had a pop up asking to review settings, it looked like you could tell them not to use ads this way, but damn I wish I would have read it now. Not my computer and it reboots to clear the profile when you “log out” so I didnt spend the time
“don’t be evil” days have been over since forever ago.
don’t be evil
2056
-Plug DNA access into pc -Google sync my brain chip with my browser page -start searching new brain plague of 2043 -Google show ad pop-up in my eyes, try to close them, but the ads are projected optic nerve.
Please drink verification can
Don’t forget to scream “I fucking love Amazon!” clearly into the microphone.
Black mirror comming true!
That’s fine. I’ll continue to use Firefox.
It’s crazy to think that this level of intrusion is considered fair game. The way these behaviors are normalized is completely dystopian.
They already did this with Youtube. I turned of Youtube history because I didn’t want anyone being able to track what I watch. All of a sudden, Youtube’s home page for my account was blank with a message that said “Turn on history if you want to see recommendations”. I sat with that for a couple days, going to Youtube to check out channels I’d subscribed to. It wasn’t the same. When I got to Youtube for some distraction, I want to discover something different from my usual stuff. So I delete my history weekly as part of “routine maintainence”.
Same I delete all my history in clean state on youtube. I hate seeng videos thay I’ve already watched before.
That deletion strategy is useless. They can still retain that information indefinitely.
Just use the search bar.
Firefox
I assumed this was happening for years
I think it’s a new thing where the browser does the profiling locally, and supposedly without allowing sites to track you anymore. But of course the sites can still ask the browser for your personal interests in order to serve you ads, so I couldn’t tell you why they think this is any better.
It would no longer be minable from a central server. That’s measurably better.
You can also quickly delete it yourself. That’s better
Who tf used Chrome for years!?
(checks notes)
Oh, the majority :|
Well that’s the thing, Google needed something to test with before they started doing this.
I thought this is the way it’s been since 2008.
So glad I moved to Firefox, fu Google
Mobile has extensions too. Ublock on Firefox mobile is a god send.
I tried Firefox in like 2016 but it was very slow for some reason.
Is it fast now? Been thinking about securing my privacy lately so I might give it another try.
Im going for as much privacy I can while still maintaining as much functionality as possible.
Anyone having any pointers?
Ive used Firefox and chrome for a long time side by side and on a daily use basis there is not any discernable difference that’s caused by the browser. On Firefox, add the extensions ublock origin, privacy badger, and decrentraleyes to start with, and I’d recommend changing default search to duckduckgo or start page as well. Your entire web experience will be massively improved (Yes ddg and start page look and feel different. Search results are the same but without all the ads and misdirects)
Bro, 2016 in browser terms is ancient history.
Imagine saying in 2003: “I tried such-and-such in 1996. Is it fast now?”
If you want privacy, you will sacrifice convenience.
Yet the simps still won’t use Firefox
I feel like people in general give google too big of a pass all the time. I feel like I read apple hate every second while people somehow distinguish android from google.
Ikr? Google openly became the cartoonishly evil overlord, entered pop culture as that as well (Meta, Apple, MS, etc also all the same).
And installing either Firefox or Chrome is exactly the same for the user, usage too. But no, let the poor megacorp have some more data so they can sell us some more direct ads and even more indirect ads that aren’t even labeled as such (yet Alphabet profits from that).
I hated being the go-to guy for tech support in my family, but at least I get to jam open sauce things everywhere. They are never happy with any changes, but after a few days nobody remembers Microsoft & co, so everyone is really happy with things like Linux, Firefox, LibreOffice, Thunderbird, open android apps, etc
Every bit helps. Nicely done friend!
But they have a great excuse tho! Something about vertical tabs! Fuck privacy when vertical tabs are at stake!!
Vertical tabs are an ABOMINATION!
I think I’ll just invite Google to come get my dna, set up cameras everywhere, and install a microchip in my brain. Then I can be done with this slow-walk of privacy invasion.
I got the Google Suppository Health Monitor, I just stick it in my butt and nano bots flood my body looking for things to advertise to me about.
Even if Google isn’t out to exploit this, basically the people running the ads can. John Oliver sort of did this, but geographically: youtu.be/wqn3gR1WTcA?si=GBKBNrQ-x0QKvwBh&t=13…
This will expose your user data. This will allow you to get targeted, and it will allow you to get targeted for long term interests versus short term ones. God forbid someone with a political agenda ever decides to act on this data …
Here is an alternative Piped link(s): piped.video/wqn3gR1WTcA?si=GBKBNrQ-x0QKvwBh&
Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
I’m open-source, check me out at GitHub.
If someone is swayed by a political advertisement, they are, by definition, consuming content they desire.
If someone is swayed by instructions to kill themselves, they are, be definition, consuming content they desire.
That’s a bad argument. Marketing is one thing, manipulation is totally different.
There’s nothing specifically wrong with marketing in general, but marketers with access to enormous amounts of private information blur the line between advertising and manipulation. Using people’s private information to each individual exactly what they want to hear about a candidate without regard to the truth is absolutely something that we should be concerned about.
Perhaps to a perfectly rational being, but I don’t happen to know any of those myself.
How about not using Chrome? Firefox Gang!
I am the only person out of my friends group who doesn’t use chrome. One of my friends even fully understands the issues with chrome and still won’t stop using it!
I can’t understand this there’s got to be some kind of psychological phenomenon happening here I’m completely unaware of.
I feel like they have some sort of unwarranted loyalty to chrome…
At a personal level I use waterfox I just like the way it looks.
Let me get this straight:
Until know, Google and other advertisers stored cookies on your device and tracked your browsing history on their servers.
Know, everything happens local and this is somewhat worse then the old way to do it?
How?
No. Now Google straight up looks into your browser history instead of trying to guess your interests.
Chrome is like Facebook, zero respect for privacy. Anything you do with Chrome can and will be used. From day one Chrome has fed all your browsing activity to their index bot. After your browsed a URL, shortly after googlebot crawled that site.
Well that’s what to expect from a web browser created by an advertising company.
And yet Firefox marketshare will keep dwindling. Drives me mad!
A few years ago, I switched from Firefox to Chrome. A few months ago, I switched back to Firefox. Chrome is rolling out changes which are completely unacceptable, such as making adblockers impossible, and using my private browsing history for their own ads.
Not my browser history. I use private browsing… and Firefox!
Got this today, I have to use chrome for a couple things every month, and they conveniently turned on all their tracking and ads and bullshit. Had to turn all that crap off again. Not that they’d glean any useful information from my paltry chrome usage, but it still pisses me off.
In Chrome, start at the three dots in the upper-right corner and go to Settings > Privacy and Security > Ad privacy. (Or just type chrome://settings/adPrivacy into your address field.) The ad privacy page lets you turn off Chrome’s targeted ads.
As per The Verge
I figured they did this already just without saying it out loud
I’m glad I stopped using chrome / chromium a long time ago.
Its like Google loves to give me reasons to stop using their products.
Good article, but for those concerned that don’t have time to read the whole this, here’s the important bit:
“you can switch this functionality off and on by visiting chrome://settings/adPrivacy and/or chrome://settings/privacySandbox – cut’n’paste these URLs into your address bar to jump straight to the controls”
Interesting tidbit: I’ve been watching “the big bang theory” a lot these past few weeks on my own hosted jellyfin install.
I don’t use google search anywhere, I don’t type tbbt anywhere. Yet, on my Android phone I have this obligatory Google news thing when I swipe left (HATE that) and all of the sudden that thing got chock full of chatgpt written TBBT articles… I don’t really go there (usually end up there by accident swiping left once too many) and I don’t read those articles but it really obviously switched to TBBT articles when I switched to watching TBBT.
This really kinda freaks me out and makes me wonder WTF more google is monitoring. I use a Google Chromecast, I guess google monitors that?
1984@lemmy.today 1 year ago
It’s disgusting. Users browser history is private, just like their search history. Fuck Google.
TWeaK@lemm.ee 1 year ago
Exactly. If Google wants to collect user data and use it for their products, they should be paying users. You can’t build and sell cars without paying for the nuts and bolts, yet Google has been taking their materials for free.
TheEntity@kbin.social 1 year ago
Not for free, for a browser. This doesn't make it any less evil.
insomniac@sh.itjust.works 1 year ago
A few posts up, there’s an article about how basically all cars manufacturers are a privacy nightmare
…mozilla.org/…/its-official-cars-are-the-worst-pr…
southbayrideshare@lemmy.world 1 year ago
It seems to me that we need some software that intercepts the data being sent to Google, replaces all proper nouns with “Sundar Pichai,” all numbers with a 10 followed by 100 zeroes, and randomizes everything else before sending. The data they receive would look like it was smuggled out of a Being John Malkovich parallel universe.
Or we could just use Firefox. Or Lynx.
yoz@aussie.zone 1 year ago
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