Chrome Introduces One-Time Permissions and Enhanced Safety Check for Safer Browsing

Sep 18, 2024Ravie LakshmananBrowser Security / Privacy

Google has announced that it's rolling out a new set of features to its Chrome browser that gives users more control over their data when surfing the internet and protects against online threats.

"With the newest version of Chrome, you can take advantage of our upgraded Safety Check, opt out of unwanted website notifications more easily and grant select permissions to a site for one time only," the tech giant said.

The improvements to Safety Check allow it to run automatically in the background, notifying users of the actions it has taken, such as revoking permissions for websites they no longer visit, and flagging potentially unwanted notifications.

It's also designed to notify users of security issues that need to be addressed, while automatically revoking notification permissions from suspicious sites identified by Google Safe Browsing.

"On Desktop, Safety Check will continue to notify you if you have any Chrome extensions installed that may pose a security risk to you, then bring you to the extensions page and show a summary panel with quick controls to remove them," Andrew Kamau, product manager of Chrome, said,

Safety Check, besides offering users the option to enable Google Safe Browsing protections, is also capable of warning if a username or password stored in the Google Password Manager was involved in a data breach, the search and advertising company added.

Some of the other key updates include the ability to unsubscribe from unwanted website notifications directly on the notifications drawer on both Pixel and Android devices, as well as grant one-time permissions for Chrome on Android and Desktop.

"With this feature, you can choose to grant select permissions — such as access to your camera or mic — to a site for one time only, helping you better manage your online privacy," Kamau said. "Once you leave the site, Chrome will revoke the permissions. The site won't be able to use those permissions until you explicitly grant them again."

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