Google Won't Be Deprecating Third-Party Cookies In Chrome After All

In a blog post today, Google said it has an "updated approach" that won't involve "deprecating third-party cookies" in Chrome. Instead, it's introducing "a new experience in Chrome that lets people make an informed choice that applies across their web browsing," which they'd be able to adjust at any time. Digiday reports: Google executives are already discussing this pivot with regulators including the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) and plan to do the same with the industry soon. For now, details on what this actually means remain light. And as for a timeline, Google seems to have learned its lesson from the numerous delays to its cookie-killing plans -- there isn't one. "As this moves forward, it remains important for developers to have privacy-preserving alternatives," Anthony Chavez, vp of the Privacy Sandbox, said in the blog post. "We'll continue to make the Privacy Sandbox APIs available and invest in them to further improve privacy and utility."

For those who have poured time and effort into third-party cookie alternatives, fear not: Google will keep the APIs in the Sandbox. Your work isn't going to waste. In fact, the plan is to continue to invest in them, continued Chavez, to further improve "privacy and utility." Plus, additional privacy controls, like the recently announced IP Protection (i.e. IP masking for privacy protection) in Chrome's Incognito mode, will be added to the Sandbox. "We developed the Privacy Sandbox with the goal of finding innovative solutions that meaningfully improve online privacy while preserving an ad-supported internet that supports a vibrant ecosystem of publishers, connects businesses with customers, and offers all of us free access to a wide range of content," Chavez wrote in the blog post. Or, to put it another way, the Sandbox isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

*Google temporarily suspends one evil scheme

[locater16]

Vows to explore other schemes to totally monopolize internet advertising instead

Re:

[Dracos]

I got it:

• Disabling third-party cookies gets silently re-enabled in a future update
• Even when disabled, there is a secret whitelist of Google domains.

Would break UK Government's darling cloud

[Anonymous Cward]

Google killing third-party cookies would break Microsoft 365, and thus by extension NHS Digital and a whole load of other outsourced cloudy garbage dependent upon broken Microsoft products. The competition BS is exactly that, bullshit. No member of the UK public wants more tracked adverts, we all want less!

Re:

[mccalli]

" No member of the UK public wants..."

The complaints won't have been from the public. They'll have been from the advertising industry, the 'competition' they're referring to is allowing advertisers to compete to show you things. Your wishes don't begin to come into this, sadly.

Re:

[laddiebuck]

Are you sure? I use Firefox and the few times I've been forced to use MS 365 I've had zero problems with it. If Firefox can do it, surely Chrome can too.

Re:

[Anonymous Cward]

Here's a documented example of required third-party cookies: https://learn.microsoft.com/en... [microsoft.com]

Safari and Firefox both have issues with Microsoft Teams when it's accessed from within a webmail link from within Outlook for the web due to this requirement, for example. Going direct to the Teams website then manually going to the calendar to open meetings will still work though.

Google canceled canceling cookies?

[ebunga]

Google knows best I guess.

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

Not exactly. If you read TFA they are just going to ask the user what they want to do, rather than simply turning off third party cookies. It sounds like there will be a pop-up when Chrome gets updated and the user will choose to keep them enabled or not. They will probably also be asked about the Privacy Sandbox features at the same time.

It's a way to avoid regulatory and legal issues. If they disabled third party cookies unilaterally there would be complaints from advertisers about market manipulation, es

Good!

[Coookie Monster]

No defecate cookie!! Cookie for eating, not for pooping!

ME LOVE COOKIE!!! OM NOM NOM NOM

Excerpt from Google's press release

[93 Escort Wagon]

"Having watched the browser market closely for the past half-decade, we became aware that most people won't switch away from Chrome no matter what we do! So we're keeping third-party cookies. In fact, we're incorporating new tracking capabilities for our advertising partners, including telling them when you're in the bathroom - and, as soon as we've finished deploying our updated in-building bathroom maps and high-resolution cameras, we'll be letting our partners know whether you're going number one or two!

And, while we're at it, you need to bark like a dog if you want to keep using Chrome! Go on, now - Bark! Bark! LOUDER, LITTLE DOGGIE!!"

Re:Excerpt from Google's press release

[narcc]

What are they going to do? Switch to FireFox? Mozilla made a change to the FireFox UI that I personally didn't like one time more than a decade ago that I just can't stop bitching and moaning about, so I guess I'll just bend over and take whatever Google's pushing.

Google. Privacy.

[jenningsthecat]

Two diametrically opposed concepts. Anyone who believes otherwise is a fool.

Circumvent anti-trust

[VeryFluffyBunny]

Smart: Rather than Google force-ending 3rd party cookies, they can get Chrome users to make the decision for them, thus absolving Google of the responsibility & any anti-trust cases. A few dark patterns & a bit of nagging & most people will "choose" to block them, & Google's off the hook; it wasn't us, it was the users!

Deprecating Chrome

[WaffleMonster]

Wacky that Firefox fixed third party cookie by default years ago and now Google is bailing on ever stopping this insane practice. At the same time they are continuing with a whole new means of cross domain data exfiltration.

I hope more people see the light and bail on this nonsense from Google.

Cookiepocalypse

[SixMinutes]

And here I was actually looking forward to the cookiepocalypse.

I mean this was obviously just a play by Google to corral the ad market. But with third party cookies gone and all those third party trackers dead in the water, we would be left with just one big shitty company to regulate instead of ten thousand tiny shitty companies. A future without trackers was imaginable if this change went through, but if Google can't force it then we're going to be stuck with tracking cookies forever.