Google Incognito Mode: Not Really Incognito After All?

How true is it that Google Incognito Mode is not really incognito?

The Google Incognito Mode appeared to be not so incognito after all which is contradicting to its name and purpose.

Several users of the Google Chrome browser use the Incognito Mode to hide their web browsing history and cookies or the small files about them from other users of the device.

However, based on the article from Readers Digest, a study from Vanderbilt University that users can still be identified by Google even though they are in “incognito”.

google incognito mode
Photo courtesy of Lifewire

Researchers had analyzation on how Google collected data on devices such as Androids and Chromebooks as well as on the services such as YouTube or Google.

They found out that Google can still the identity of the user to the browsed website even if they are using Google Incognito Mode.

When a user opens the “incognito”, a message will pop up that says: “Now you can browse privately, and other people who use this device won’t see your activity.” 

The mode states that your browsing history and cookies will no longer be visible to other users but it also “warns you that your activity may still be visible to the websites you visit, internet service providers, and the school or employer that controls the network,” according to the article.

In addition, the Independent stated in its report that “a person’s web activity on sites that run ads from Google’s online ad marketplace can be connected through the anonymized cookies to their YouTube, Gmail, or other Google account.”

On the other hand, there is a way that you can avoid this – by not logging into your Google account while you are using the Incognito Mode.

READ ALSO: USB Stick Uses: 7 Ways To Use This Device That You Might Don’t Know

Leave a Comment