Your Computer Should Say What You Tell It To Say - Google is adding code to Chrome that will send tamper-proof information about your operating system and other software, and share it with websites
eff.org
Summary
- Google's proposal, Web Environment Integrity (WEI), aims to send tamper-proof information about a user's operating system and software to websites.
- The information sent would help reduce ad fraud and enhance security, but it also raises concerns about user autonomy and control over devices.
- The authors argue that implementing WEI could lead to websites blocking access for users not on approved systems and browsers.
- They express worries about companies gaining more control over users' devices and the potential for abuse.
- The authors emphasize that users should have the final say over what information their devices share.
- Remote attestation tools, like WEI, might have their place in specific contexts but should not be implemented on the open web due to potential negative consequences.
- The authors advocate for preserving user autonomy and the openness of the web, emphasizing that users should be the ultimate decision-makers about their devices.
Joke:
Two pieces of string walk into a bar. The first piece of string asks for a drink. The bartender says, “Get lost. We don’t serve pieces of string.”
The second string ties a knot in his middle and messes up his ends. Then he orders a drink.
The bartender says, “Hey, you aren’t a piece of string, are you?” The piece of string says, “Not me! I'm a frayed knot.”
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At this point, I only keep Chrome around for the odd website that only works on Chrome. It's astonishing how quickly Google is burning through good will lately.
Google sees that their business is at risk.
Primarily Google is an advertisement company. And so their top priority is to profile you to serve you targeted ads. Every single product of Google has this number one priority.
Why not show you ads on any of their own websites then, like google docs, forms, slides, etc. I get that they show you ads kn YouTube, but that doesn't have Google in the name. Do they want users to not associate 'Google' websites as being overrun with ads, while trying to that to as many other websites and apps as possible?
That, and those platforms are also at the core of their business offering. You'd think it shouldn't be that hard for them to just offer a business version of those apps that is ad free. But in my experience administering a g-suite org for a couple years, they are absolutely lazy enough to just shovel users on the literal exact same thing they give to the general public.
The worrying thing is how many websites may accept this standard. We can choose to use other browsers, sure. But the vast majority of users are uninformed chrome users. They won’t see a change in their day to day web usage. But Firefox, and other Chromium-based browsers like brave and Vivaldi are choosing to not adopt it. It’s only a matter of time before ad blocking doesn’t work on those browsers because major publishers implement this to ensure their content is properly paywalled.
Most of the times, the websites check the "user agent string" of the browser. If you can change the user agent to chrome while using those websites, you can eliminate the need of keeping chrome around.