Internet Browsers To Add Privacy Features

In response to pressure from the Federal Trade Commission, popular Internet browsers Chrome (Google) and Firefox (Mozilla) will add new privacy features to their programs. Specifically, users will now have the option to opt-out of having their browsing behavior monitored by the programs in order to provide users with custom ads.

For example, when you visit lots of websites about celebrity gossip and then see ads on Google or that advertise a People magazine subscription. The FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection proposed the “Do Not Track” feature to address consumer privacy concerns.

On Google’s Chrome the feature is called Keep My Opt-Outs, which keeps a users’ opt-out preferences even after the cookies have been cleared and Firefox’s Do Not Track feature is supposed to work on the honor system, so it’s not. As Fast Company reported, “For the tool to work, ad tracking companies essentially must opt-in to the system, and agree not to monitor web-surfing habits of users who have chosen to opt-out.” No companies have opted-in yet, Fast Company added.

So, the takeaway is that you can keep Google from knowing every other intimate detail about you that’s not on YouTube or Gmail already by changing your Chrome settings. Firefox, however, needs to get on the ball.