Chrome introduces personalized Ads based on browsing history, sparking privacy concerns

Recently, Google Chrome displayed a notification that informs users about upcoming personalized ads based on their browsing history. According to the new feature, the browser determines user interests through recent browsing activity and shares a maximum of three topics with websites to customize ads. The system automatically removes topics older than four weeks, but they can reappear if users continue to engage with relevant content. Users also have the ability to block specific topics from being shared.

This development has sparked privacy worries among users concerned about Google tracking their browsing history without explicit consent. However, you can disable Chrome from displaying ads based on their browsing history by following these steps:

1. Click on the three dots at the top of the Chrome screen and go to Settings.
2. Navigate to Privacy and security, then click on Ad privacy.
3. Locate Ad topics and switch the toggle to turn it off.

Despite this, individual websites may still use tracking techniques like cookies and tracking pixels to collect user data. For greater privacy protection, users might consider using alternative browsers such as DuckDuckGo or Brave, which prioritize user privacy. Brave launched its own search engine 100% independent from Google or Bing this year, including an image and video search index.