Google Chrome Privacy Notice

Last modified: December 8, 2009 (view archived versions)

The Google Privacy Policy describes how we treat personal information when you use Google's products and services, including information provided when you use Google Chrome. In addition, the following describes our privacy practices that are specific to Google Chrome. Google will notify you of any material changes to this policy, and you will always have the option to use the browser in a way that does not send any personal information to Google or to discontinue using it.

Information Google receives when you use Google Chrome

You do not need to provide any personally identifying information in order to download and use Google Chrome. When you download Google Chrome or use it to contact Google’s servers, Google receives only standard log information including your machine’s IP address and one or more cookies. You can configure Google Chrome to not send cookies to Google or other sites as explained here.

In addition, some Google Chrome features send limited additional information to Google:

  • When you type URLs or queries in the address bar, the letters you type are sent to Google so the Suggest feature can automatically recommend terms or URLs you may be looking for. If you choose to share usage statistics with Google and you accept a suggested query or URL, Google Chrome will send that information to Google as well. You can disable this feature as explained here.
  • If you navigate to a URL that does not exist, Google Chrome may send the URL to Google so we can help you find the URL you were looking for. You can disable this feature as explained here.
  • Google Chrome's SafeBrowsing feature periodically contacts Google's servers to download the most recent list of known phishing and malware sites. When you visit a site that we think is be a phishing or malware site, your browser will send Google a hashed, partial copy of the site's URL so that we can send more information about the risky URL. Google cannot determine the real URL you are visiting solely from this information. In addition, if you have chosen to share usage statistics with Google and you visit a site that we think could be a phishing or malware site, certain other data will be shared with Google, including the full URL that you visited, the "referer" header sent to that page, and the URL that matched the Google Safe Browsing malware list. You can disable the Google Safe Browsing service as described here, or you can opt-out of sharing usage statistics with Google as described here. More information about how this works is here.
  • Your copy of Google Chrome includes one or more unique application numbers. These numbers and information about your installation of the browser (e.g., version number, language) will be sent to Google when you first install and use it and when Google Chrome automatically checks for updates. If you choose to send usage statistics and crash reports to Google, the browser will send us this information along with a unique application number as well. Crash reports can contain information from files, applications and services that were running at the time of a malfunction. We use crash reports to diagnose and try to fix any problems with the browser.
  • You may choose Google as your search engine using Google Chrome, and you may also use Google Chrome to access other Google services such as Gmail. The Privacy Policies of Gmail or other services apply when you access them, no matter which browser you use. Using Google Chrome to connect to Google services will not cause Google to receive any special or additional personally identifying information about you.
  • If you enable Google Chrome's synchronization feature, Google Chrome will store your browser setting information, such as your bookmark data, on Google's servers in association with your Google Account. Information stored with your Account is protected by the Google Privacy Policy. We need to store this information in order to send it to other computers on which you choose to enable Google Chrome's synchronization feature. More details on the specific information you may select to synchronize is here. You can disable this feature as explained here.

Information website operators receive when you visit a site using Google Chrome

Sites that you visit using Google Chrome will automatically receive standard log information similar to that received by Google. These sites may also set their own cookies or use web storage on your machine. You can restrict cookies by setting your preferences in the Google Chrome Options menu. If you use Google Chrome in incognito mode, it will not transmit any pre-existing cookies to sites that you visit. Sites may deposit new cookies on your machine while you are in incognito mode, however. These cookies will be temporarily stored and transmitted to sites while you remain in incognito mode. They will be deleted when you close the browser or return to normal browsing mode.

Information stored on your computer when you use Google Chrome

Google Chrome records useful information about your browsing history on your own computer. This includes:

  • Basic browsing history information: the URLs of pages that you visit, a cache file of text from those pages, and a list of some IP addresses linked from pages that you visit.
  • A searchable index of most pages you visit (except for secure pages with "https" web addresses, such as some bank pages)
  • Thumbnail-sized screenshots of most pages you visit
  • Cookies or web storage data deposited on your machine by websites you visit
  • A record of downloads you have made from websites

You can delete all or portions of this history at any time as explained in the FAQ.

You can also limit the information Google Chrome saves on your computer by using incognito mode. In this mode, the browser will not store basic browsing history information such as URLs, cached page text, or IP addresses of pages linked from the websites you visit. It will also not store snapshots of pages that you visit or keep a record of your downloads. (This information could still be stored elsewhere on your computer, though.) New cookies received in incognito mode will not be saved after you close your browser or return to normal browsing mode. You can see when you are in incognito mode because the incognito icon appears in the top left corner of your browser; in some cases the border of your browser window may also change color.

When you make changes to your browser configuration, such as by bookmarking a web page or changing your settings, this information is also saved. These changes are not affected by incognito mode.

You can choose to have Google Chrome save your passwords for specific websites. Stored passwords can be reviewed in the Personal Stuff tab of the Options dialog box.

Information relating to using extensions on Google Chrome

If you install an extension on Google Chrome, it can store data locally and send any data it has permission to access to any third party server that it has permission to communicate with. Therefore you should be very careful that you know and trust the developer of the extension. When you download an extension, you will be notified of the permissions that you are giving the extension. Google Chrome saves a list of all your extensions on your computer, together with the URL for updates and the category of permissions required by the extension to operate. Periodically, Google Chrome will use this information to check for updates to the extensions and to download and install updates automatically. In addition, Google Chrome will store a list of extensions known to be harmful or illegal, for use in the event that it is necessary to disable or remove an extension from your computer. Periodically, Google Chrome will download or update this list.

If you use extensions hosted by Google, your browser will send us one or more unique information numbers when you first install the extension, when Google Chrome checks for updates for the extension, and when you uninstall the extension. We will use this information to track usage data about the extension on the extensions gallery and to rank the popularity of extensions. We will not use this information to identify you or associate this information with your personal information.

Uses

Information that Google receives when you use Google Chrome is processed in order to operate and improve Google Chrome and other Google services. Information that other website operators receive is subject to the privacy polices of those websites. Google Chrome stores information on your machine in order to improve the browser’s performance and provide you with features, such the option to review snapshots from pages you have visited.

More information

Google adheres to the US Safe Harbor privacy principles. For more information about the Safe Harbor framework or our registration, see the Department of Commerce's web site.

Further information about Google Chrome is available here.

For more information about our privacy practices, go to the full privacy policy. If you have additional questions, please contact us any time. Or write to us at:

Privacy Matters
c/o Google Inc.
1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View CA 94043 (USA)

©2010 Google - Google Home - About Google - Help