How to Disable Chrome’s New Targeted Ad Tracking

Do you want to know how to disable Chrome’s new targeted ad tracking? This is one of the most frequently asked questions by many of our readers. You should know that Google is at the moment replacing third-party cookies with a Topics API, which can easily be turned off but only if you know how to.

Chrome’s New Targeted Ad Tracking

Chrome’s New Targeted Ad Tracking

This summer, tech conglomerate, Google started rolling out its new Topics API, which “allows a browser to share information with third parties about a user’s interests while preserving privacy.” A part of the new Privacy Sandbox of Google, the API in question is supposed to directly replace the third-party cookies that have been following many of us around for many years now, and then reporting where we go and what we buy, among many other pieces of info.

The Topics API as you should know was included in the Chrome 115 release back in July, and if it is that you don’t have it yet, then you will soon. If however the idea of sharing information regarding your interests with third parties doesn’t go well with you, then you can easily turn it off. And in a bit, I will be directing you on how to do successfully do this.

How to Turn Off Google’s Ad Tracking Feature

To disable this Google feature, follow the steps below;

  • Open your Chrome app and then click on the three dots located in the upper right corner.
  • Next, go to the settings option and select privacy and security.
  • Tap or click on ad privacy.

That’s it! or you can simply just type chrome://settings/adPrivacy directly into your address field.

You should know that you will get to see three categories when you follow the steps above and they are;

  • Ad topics – they assume your interests that are based on your browsing history.
  • Site-suggested ads – they suggest ads based on the sites that you have visited.
  • Ad measurement – they share data with the sites in a bid to help them to measure the effectiveness of their advertising.

That’s it.

How Each of the Google Ads Tracking Levels Affect Users

You should click on each. And if it is that you want, you can take a pause to find out more about what interests as well as sites that Google has been associated with you. You can even just get to turn off subcategories for each — for instance, under Ad topics, you can easily and effectively block Business and Industrial but however, keep Computer and video games on the other hand very much active.

However, if it is that you want to save yourself some time, as you get to go into each of the three categories, all you have to do is to just toggle each one off. And that’s it, you are done.

What You Need To Know About This Method

Of course, you should know that this isn’t a foolproof privacy method — for instance, individual sites can have their very own cookies, tracking pixels, as well as other methods of collecting data regarding you. But it’s however a start. And if it is not enough, then you can look into some of the more privacy-centric browsers in the industry, such as DuckDuckGo and Brave.

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