Google Chrome Enhances Incognito Mode Alert Amid Privacy-Related Legal Issue

Google Chrome has revamped its in-built Incognito Mode's alert message. This unique browsing feature, meant to erase session data after closing the browser, now comes with an enhanced warning for users, indicating that websites can still gather user data, and other users on the same device will remain oblivious of their activity. This alteration follows a contentious legal dispute concerning user tracking, questioning the privacy standards of the Incognito Mode.

MSPowerUser detected an altered alert on the Google Chrome Canary 122.0.6251.0 version. This revised alert appears when a user triggers the Incognito Mode window. The distinct message in the stable Chrome version says you can privately browse and prevent people using the same device from accessing your activity. It also notifies users that downloads, bookmarks and reading list items will persist.

Google’s newly introduced warning, as seen by the users, says that while their activity will be invisible to other users of the device, it does not affect the data collection process of the websites and services, including Google. In simpler words, your browsing data can still be gathered even if you're in Incognito Mode. The details about saved items like downloads, bookmarks, and reading lists on the device and the visibility of personal data to third parties continue to remain unchanged.

This tweak in Chrome's warning message comes subsequent to Google's announcement last month to settle a class-action lawsuit filed in 2020. Google was accused of identifying and accumulating users' browsing data in real-time despite the activation of the Incognito Mode. The proposed settlement is planned for presentation by the end of the current month, with a potential approval expected in February.