Google Chrome To Disable Third-Party Cookies. What Does It Mean For Privacy?

Google will soon start rolling out a new feature in its Chrome browser which will disable third-party cookies with its 'Tracking Protection' feature.

Cookies are small pieces of data which track our online behaviour and preferences on specific websites, enabling personalised ads and product recommendations.

However, cookies from third-party websites hosted by Google may have the ability to retrieve your personal information and can impede your browser speed by consuming bandwidth.

It will initially be available to 1% of global users, about 30 million people. These randomly-chosen users will be asked if they want to "browse with more privacy".

The search engine describes the changes as a test, with plans for a full rollout to eliminate cookies later this year.

Anthony Chavez, Google vice president, said in a blog post, "If a site doesn't work without third-party cookies and Chrome notices you're having issues... we'll prompt you with an option to temporarily re-enable third-party cookies for that website."