Chrome adds the "Do Not Track" function to improve privacy

The development group navigator de Google is working on the implementation of the system "Do not track" created by Mozilla and that allows the user to express their will not to be tracked and avoid well the targeted advertising.

The next version of Google Chrome will have a built-in "Do Not Track" function, which prevents the user from being monitored and then offers personalized advertisements.

This system had been requested in 2007 by the North American consumer associations, and began to be implemented in 2009. Its operation is similar to the "Do not call record" for telephone lines: when the Do Not Track function is activated, the browser informs the users servers that the user does not want to be tracked for advertising purposes.

This feature is already available in Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, and Safari; Chrome is the only browser that has not yet implemented it. As a company that makes big revenue from personalized advertising, Google had not shown any signs of being eager to include it, but recently the White House held meetings with the main Internet players, urging them to join the initiative. Rob Shilkin, a Google spokesman, confirmed that the addition of Do Not Track in Chrome is a consequence of those meetings.

Many advertisers have been concerned about this system - which would significantly decrease the effectiveness of their ads, thus reducing their income - but as Do Not Track is disabled by default in all browsers (and Google will follow the same path), they trust that most users will not enable the option.

However, Do Not Track does not guarantee user privacy. The system does not block the tracking methods used by online advertising companies, but simply states that the user wishes not to be tracked, trusting the commitment of the companies involved to respect their will.

Source: PCWorld