Add-ons are a necessary component to take advantage of the modern web experience, so that it is difficult to imagine using a browser without any addition, and despite this, the Extensions are not without some errors, as is the case for some mobile applications, as some foreign reports confirmed that the add-ons collect user data And thus sell it to advertisers, and fortunately, the new Chrome policy for 2021 will put an end to this matter, as Google confirmed in its conference that the next time you want to add a new extension to Chrome, an option will appear in which you specify the powers that this extension can access, Each extension will contain a "Privacy Practices" section explaining the type of data you intend to collect. Starting January 18, 2021, Google will also require developers to provide a detailed report on the privacy practices of users that are collected in the Chrome Web Store, such as The procedure imposed by Apple recently on its AppStore for developers, which was opposed by major companies such as WhatsApp, and Google says in a comment about this step: "It is a challenge to know what developers can do with the data they have. With her help, we hope that they respect the new security measures through the enhanced Safe Browsing feature that will protect users' data. "
Although the announcement does not specifically mention when this new option will actually be available in the Chrome Web Store, it is expected that it will roll out alongside the new "Privacy practices" next month. Speaking of this, Google shared a screenshot. It precisely explains how the plugin will operate.
As the attached picture shows, the plugins collect a sample of personal information, including name, address, e-mail, age and phone number, as well as have the power to collect authentication information and data about user activity. The advertisement also includes a section highlighting that The data collected is not sold to third parties, nor is it used or transferred for purposes unrelated to the main plugin function.
Perhaps these are not the only changes coming to Chrome extensions, as in a separate announcement linked to the Chrome Dev Summit, Google said that it is about to release a new update to the well-known security tool Manifest V3 in mid-January when the Chrome 88 update is released to the public, a step that it does not like Add-on developers, especially those who work on ad-blocking tools, as from the authority of the Manifest extension, it sets limits for extension developers aiming to prevent them from accessing a lot of user data, and it also places relatively severe restrictions on how extensions installed in the browser interact with the web page, and Google says it made some changes to V3 based on the negative comments and responses it received.
The good news for developers from this summit is that they will get some new tools that will improve the performance of their web applications as part of Google's Web Vital initiative, which aims to provide developers with the right performance metrics to help them better understand the user experience while using their web applications. .
"AI Unbound: Shaping the Future, One Algorithm at a Time".