Apple has officially issued a fresh privacy advisory for iPhone users, asking them to avoid using Google Chrome and other Google apps due to increasing concerns around digital fingerprinting and data tracking. The company has also claimed that Safari, its own browser, offers much stronger protections, specifically as websites and advertisers increasingly turn to fingerprinting techniques to identify users.
As per Apple, Safari now actively disrupts fingerprinting by masking key device characteristics. Instead of allowing the websites to read detailed system configurations. Safari provides a pared down, uniform profile so multiple users appear identical to trackers. This makes it harder for advertising networks to build persistent profiles, something fingerprinting is specifically designed to do. Unlike the conventional ways like tracking cookies, fingerprinting cannot be disabled by the user and offers no opt out, making ist resurgence a big privacy issue.
Not only Apple, Mozilla has also upgraded Firefox with similar anti-fingerprinting measures recently. Apple has also highlighted that Safari includes AI driven tracking prevention, more sturdy private browsing modes and safeguards against location based profiling, areas where it says Chrome falls short.
However, Apple’s warning doesn’t stop with Chrome. Even the iPhone users who rely on Safari may unknowingly be exposed to Google’s data collection practices. Since Google remains Safari’s default search engine, iOS users frequently see prompts to open results in the Google App. The company has also wanted the Google App to gather even more personal data than Chrome and tapping the Try app link at the bottom of search pages could lead users into a more heavily tracked environment.
For the unversed, Google Chrome still retains a massive global user base, crossing more than 3 billion users. Apple notes that users ultimately make their decision but urged the emphasises that anyone prioritizing privacy should stay within Safari and avoid shifting to Google App.