Google Tests FLoC as a Chrome Alternative to Cookies

Google has announced the start of testing a new experimental advertising targeting technology called Federated Learning of Cohorts (FLoC). FLoC is designed to be an alternative to third-party cookies. Unlike cookies, FLoC does not track the actions of individual users but instead groups users into cohorts based on their interests.

Chrome will begin creating these cohorts based on user behavior and then share special group identifiers with third-party trackers and advertisers online. Participants in the test are selected automatically and at random. Those who have disabled third-party cookies in Chrome are not included in the test.

“Advertisers will only be provided with a cohort identification number. This approach is different from how cookies work, which track individual users across every website,” explained Marshall Vale, Product Manager for Google Privacy Sandbox.

However, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has criticized FLoC, arguing that the technology could actually make it easier to track users through their cohort identifiers.

“A cohort identifier is a direct reflection of your online behavior. It can supplement behavioral profiles that many trackers are already collecting,” the EFF explained.

The future of this technology depends on the direction Google ultimately chooses, says Vadim Misbakh-Solovyov, a technical specialist at RosKomSvoboda. According to him, if Google’s privacy claims are to be believed, then the introduction of FLoC (with a ban on all other types of tracking) could be beneficial, especially considering how it currently works:

“For example, in Incognito mode, access to this API is blocked. If plugins are also allowed to spoof or override the cohort ID, it could be very useful from a privacy standpoint,” the programmer says.

However, he also notes that Google’s main business is still advertising sales.

“I’m afraid the development may follow the scenario predicted by the EFF, meaning it could become even easier to track users,” the expert warns, suggesting that for now, it’s best to watch how the situation develops.

The trial version is currently rolled out to 0.5% of Chrome users in Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, the United States, and the Philippines.