Google employees joke about how 'Incognito Mode' is 'not truly private'
More than half of users falsely believe using Incognito mode prevents Google from seeing what they search online, according to a 2018 study from the University of Chicago and the Leibniz University of Hanover. In addition, more than 40% falsely think that Incognito prevents websites from estimating their location, according to the study.
“We need to stop calling it Incognito and stop using a Spy Guy icon,” one Google engineer wrote in 2018 with a link to the study about users overestimating Incognito’s protections. Another employee proposed changing Incognito’s launch screen to say: “You are NOT protected from Google.” One employee proposed changing Incognito’s launch screen to say: “You are NOT protected from Google.” Google’s current Incognito launch screen tells users that “other people who use this device won’t see your activity” but that “websites you visit,” “your employer or school” and “your internet service provider” may still be able to see their activity.
“Privacy controls have long been built into our services and we encourage our teams to constantly discuss or consider ideas to improve them,” Google spokesperson José Castañeda said in a statement. “Incognito mode offers users a private browsing experience, and we’ve been clear about how it works and what it does whereas the plaintiffs in this case have purposely mischaracterized our statements.
The emails were unearthed as part of an ongoing class-action lawsuit against Google in California federal court on behalf of millions of Incognito mode users. If a judge allows the suit to move forward, Google could be on the hook for billions of dollars in damages.
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