Websites will store cookies on your device for collecting information about your browsing habits. It allows companies to track your browsing activities, so they can create an advertising profile to display targeted advertisements. Now, Google prepares to implement a new tracking technology called FLoC (Federated Learning of Cohorts) with more privacy in mind.
FLoC is a type of web-tracking technology, which will replace cross-site tracking cookies. Developed as a part of Google’s Privacy Sandbox initiative, FLoC will look at your browsing history and place you into an ad targeting group/cohorts based on your behavior. In this way, advertisers can study the effectiveness of ads in a way that does not track you across a site.
Since there is no individual profile, FLoC is more private than individual cookies, but it allows other types of tracking as well. So, to ensure your privacy, here is how to disable FloC (Privacy Sandbox) in Google Chrome for Android and desktop.
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Steps to Disable Privacy Sandbox (FloC) in Chrome for Android
1. Open Chrome browser on your Android phone.
2. Tap on the three vertical dots menu and choose Settings.
3. In the Chrome settings, tap on the Privacy and Security option.
4. Scroll down, tap on the Privacy Sandbox option and turn off Privacy Sandbox trails and FLoC features.
Steps to Disable FloC (Privacy Sandbox) in Chrome for Desktop
1. Open Chrome browser on your computer, click on the three vertical dots menu, and select Settings.
2. On the left pane of the browser, click on the Privacy and Security option.
3. Next, click on the Privacy Sandbox menu and disable FLoC and Privacy Sandbox features.
4. Alternatively, you can go to chrome://settings/privacySandbox, and disable the Privacy Sandbox and FLoC.
Note that, the setting will synchronize with your Google account. It means, if you turn it off on one device, FLoC will also be turned off on your other devices.
Privacy Sandbox isn’t available in every region, so if you cannot find this option in your Chrome browser, you do not need to do anything. And, other Chromium-based browsers, like Microsoft Edge, are not implemented Privacy Sandbox on their browser.
Update: This article was first published in June 2021, and this update includes changes in the Privacy Sandbox settings.
More Resources:
- Disable Grid Layout and Tab Group on Chrome for Android
- Get Live Captions on Windows, Mac and Linux via Google Chrome
- How to Enable, Use and Create Your Chrome Actions
- Enable Picture-in-Picture (PiP) Mode in Chrome without Extension
