Google Brings Biometric Security to Incognito Mode on iOS

“Google’s delivery of biometric security to Incognito tabs on Apple devices offers the latest illustration of the tech giant’s intensifying interest in biometric tech…”

Google has now officially brought biometric security to Chrome’s Incognito feature for iOS users. The move has been expected for some time, and has finally arrived via the version 92 update for Chrome on iOS.

It’s a significant move given the global popularity of the Chrome browser, which enjoys a healthy user base even on Apple’s iOS ecosystem. Chrome’s Incognito mode is designed to offer heightened privacy for end users by limiting the amount of data tracking employed as they search the web; now, users can lock their tabs so that others can’t get a look at what they’ve been browsing even if they are in possession of the device itself.

Tabs can be locked behind a passcode, or with the protection of Apple’s renowned biometric authentication features, Touch ID and Face ID, on an iPhone or iPad. Both are generally thought to be highly secure, with the latter offering a particularly fast and intuitive means of authentication.

Google’s delivery of biometric security to Incognito tabs on Apple devices offers the latest illustration of the tech giant’s intensifying interest in biometric tech, with the company having enabled a biometric password autofill feature on Android devices last summer. Apple is obviously interested in biometric security as well, but hasn’t offered a comparable security setting for the Private tabs feature on its Safari browser.

Another feature of Chrome 92 demonstrates Google’s commitment to cybersecurity more broadly. As detailed in a post on the company’s Security Blog, Chrome now has an improved “Site Isolation” feature that not only prevents websites from sharing processes with extensions, but also prevents extensions from sharing process with each other.

“This provides an extra line of defense against malicious extensions, without removing any existing extension capabilities,” the post explained. The functionality extends across Windows, Linux, Chrome OS, and Mac operating environments.

Sources: MacRumors, Google Security Blog

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(Originally posted on Mobile ID World)