Even Google's Own Staff Thinks 'Incognito Mode' Isn’t All It’s Cracked Up to Be

[simmerskool]

Content source

https://gizmodo.com/google-incognito-mode-google-chrome-1849648071

It turns out even Google’s own workforce isn’t sold on the company’s claims around Incognito mode’s privacy protections.

Employees reportedly cracked jokes about the feature’s inept, and potentially misleading privacy protections in recent years, with one marketing officer reportedly directly emailing CEO Sundar Pichai, basically begging him to make the product actually live up to its name according to recent court documents viewed by Bloomberg. Those jokes and internal criticism comes amid multiple lawsuits questioning Google transparency around the feature.

In one email sent to Pichai, Google marketing chief Lorraine Twohill reportedly warned that the current customer confusion around Incognito mode was forcing the company to dance around using fuzzy and hedging language that ultimately risked degrading consumer trust.

Even Google's Own Staff Thinks 'Incognito Mode' Isn’t All It’s Cracked Up to Be

Internal communications show employees joking about Incognito's abilities with one comparing it to "Guy Incognito" from The Simpsons.

gizmodo.com

pending litigation about this!

 

[oldschool]

pending litigation about this!

Not really a big deal. Any user who can read and write knows Incognito mode and any browser's 'private browsing' feature is worthless.

This is just a show-boating, reality-denying attorney general trying to curry the favor of idiots.

 

[Gangelo]

The only thing incognito mode does is to not log history for the particular session. Everything else is as 'incognito' as the summer sun..

 

[Freki123]

Any user who can read and write knows Incognito mode and any browser's 'private browsing' feature is worthless.

Most users on this forum for sure. If you would ask random people I think you would be surprised. Then ask them if they ever spend time to go through all the dozen gogglemail/account privacy settings (timeline and whatever there is) . Most users don't care or don't know (sadly).

 

[SeriousHoax]

Not really a big deal. Any user who can read and write knows Incognito mode and any browser's 'private browsing' feature is worthless.

This is just a show-boating, reality-denying attorney general trying to curry the favor of idiots.

We all know Incognito Mode was only created to watch p**n so that one can watch without the fear of forgetting to remove history

 

[oldschool]

Most users don't care or don't know (sadly).

I'm afraid you're correct. Maybe a lot of them are like my visiting sister-in-law: she was on an airline website yesterday and asked us if she should accept cookies and she was boggled by the choices. I honestly didn't know where to start it was so sad.

Luckily, my wife is absolutely nothing like my s-i-l. Not even in the same galaxy!

 

[CyberTech]

We all know Incognito Mode was only created to watch p**n so that one can watch without the fear of forgetting to remove history

Off-topic, do you watch it always? just asking for a friend

 

[HarborFront]

How about FF Private Browsing Mode? Is it not the same in effectiveness as Chrome's Incognito Mode?

 

[oldschool]

How about FF Private Browsing Mode? Is it not the same in effectiveness as Chrome's Incognito Mode?

Indeed, they're both the same AFAIK.

 

[simmerskool]

Not really a big deal. Any user who can read and write knows Incognito mode and any browser's 'private browsing' feature is worthless.

This is just a show-boating, reality-denying attorney general trying to curry the favor of idiots.

Indeed, they're both the same AFAIK.

fwiw, I haven't read the lawsuit, I think lawsuit is probably about how google presents "incognito" rather than what it says in the fine print details... my speculation.