Privacy Sandbox before the end: Google continues to allow third-party cookies
Google does not want to block third-party cookies in Chrome by default after all. The advertising industry likes this.
(Image: Twin Design/Shutterstock.com)
After the Privacy Sandbox has been postponed several times, it is now virtually over. Google wants to continue to allow third-party cookies by default. However, Chrome users will be able to deactivate them in future. This is Google's response to the wishes of the advertising industry, as well as those of some regulators. The switch to the privacy sandbox will have a "major impact on publishers, advertisers and anyone working in the advertising industry" - this will take time and work.
In fact, the UK Competition and Markets Authority and the Data Protection Authority have expressed concerns that Google's plans could harm advertising competitors while Google itself benefits. The Privacy Sandbox is an initiative under whose umbrella several projects are bundled. This originally included no longer allowing third-party cookies. Instead, Google has already tested several alternatives. This should make it possible to continue displaying targeted advertising without collecting too much individual data.
No replacement for third-party cookies
"Initial tests by ad tech companies, including Google, have shown that privacy sandbox APIs have the potential to achieve these results. We expect the overall performance of the Privacy Sandbox APIs to improve over time as adoption in the industry increases," Google writes on the blog post- leaving open the possibility that the Privacy Sandbox could still be introduced at some point. Access to the API remains open. Chrome's incognito mode is to be expanded to include IP protection.
Initially, however, people will be able to choose whether they want to allow third-party cookies. Google has been arguing for years that personalized advertising is something that people like and use. However, the new plan must now be discussed again with regulators and the industry.
Apple and Mozilla, for example, have not allowed third-party cookies in their browsers for years.
(emw)