Google to limit tracking in Android apps, starting next year
New APIs set to replace direct tracking methods used in Android app advertising
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Googlehas announced that it will be putting its Privacy Sandbox into Beta stage across Android 13 systems from early 2023, which will include limits to apps' abilities totrack user datafor advertising purposes.
The sandbox seeks to preserve user data available to advertisers, whilst concurrently respecting individualprivacy. Perhaps Google is finally taking a leaf out ofApple’s book and taking note ofconsumer demand for it.
Having been in development since February this year, Google has been working with app developers and marketing specialists on the Privacy Sandbox and is now ready to begin implementation.
New APIs
As is common with Android software updates, the Sandbox will be available to a select few devices at first, before rolling out to the wider Android market.
App developers will be able to gain access to preview builds to test out and provide feedback on the latest features. A closed Beta for the SDK runtime will also be available, which will exclude apps from using code related to advertising, so no marketing data for will be available to apps.
Currently,Android appsuse covert tracking methods. With the new Privacy Sandbox, however, various APIs will replace these.
Google unveils another step in its much-needed privacy boost>iPhone apps still track you even when you tell them not to>Popular child-monitoring Android apps have been secretly tracking the parents too
The Attribution Reporting API, for instance, eradicates cross-party user identifiers., by employing obfuscation techniques and limiting the amount of data available for reports.
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Another is the Topics API, which allows personalized interest-based ads to function without tracking multiple apps used by individuals.
There is also the Fledge API, which limits the sharing of identifiers and app usage information when advertisers attempt to remarket to those who have shown a potential interest in their products, such as when they leave an item in their checkout basket.
These APIs are set to replace advertising IDs, which uniquely identify individual users and have long been a staple of Android devices.
The Privacy Sandbox has already been met with some backlash, though. Two privacy-focused internet companies,DuckDuckGoand Brave, have their reservations about Google’s plans.
The former believes that thesenew APIs will still track user data, just indirectly, and the latter thinks the plans will actually “harm Web privacy, and further cement Google’s control over the Web.”
Lewis Maddison is a Reviews Writer for TechRadar. He previously worked as a Staff Writer for our business section, TechRadar Pro, where he had experience with productivity-enhancing hardware, ranging from keyboards to standing desks. His area of expertise lies in computer peripherals and audio hardware, having spent over a decade exploring the murky depths of both PC building and music production. He also revels in picking up on the finest details and niggles that ultimately make a big difference to the user experience.
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