Google gooses Safe Browsing with real-time protection that doesn't leak to ad giant

Google has enhanced its Safe Browsing service to enable real-time protection in Chrome for desktop, iOS, and soon Android against risky websites, without sending browsing history data to the ad biz. Safe Browsing is a Google API that's free to use for non-commercial purposes, and allows client applications to look up websites …

[Trigun]

I think I'll stick with Brave or Firefox. Mostly cause I've seen what Google is like with regards data and ad services.

[Alumoi]

Out of curiosity, did you look under the hood to see where Firefox is getting its safe browsing data from?

[Anonymous Coward]

firefox safebrowsing

That's easily disabled by mangling the shavar URL burried in about:config (at least it used to be, in fact it might have been a checkbox)

[Hubert Cumberdale]

Re: firefox safebrowsing

Yeah, at least FF lets you change that stuff.

[captain veg]

non-commercial

"Safe Browsing is a non-commercial Google API"

There is no such animal. Google might make APIs available (temporarily) at no monetary cost, but they always benefit Google's bottom line.

"To date, the Standard version has operated from a locally stored list of suspect sites, which limits the comprehensiveness of the data to whenever the list was last updated."

That will be on Chrome startup, and frequently whenever it's not busy with something else. If you're lucky.

'it sends information to Google – which the tech titan says "is only used for security purposes."'

Do I need to quote Mandy Rice-Davies?

"So in Chrome [...] the Standard tier of Safe Browsing is getting privacy-preserving, real-time protection.

And getting this from Google?

HaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa!

HaHaHaHaHa!

Ha!

[My lungs just exploded.]

-A.

[diodesign]

"There is no such animal"

Nah, you misunderstand. It's non-commercial in that it cannot be used for commercial purposes (and it's also free of charge to use.)

It's not non-commercial for Google at all. It's not for commercial use by others.

C.

[captain veg]

Re: "There is no such animal"

Thanks for the clarification.

This is obviously some strange use of the word non-commercial that I wasn't previously aware of.

-A.

[Anonymous Coward]

Safe Browsing API to look up websites

“Safe Browsing is a Google API that's free to use for non-commercial purposes, and allows client applications to look up websites in a database to see whether they pose a known risk.”

Wouldn't it be safer to design a browser that can't be compromised by clicking on malicious website.

[Sora2566]

Re: Safe Browsing API to look up websites

That's like trying to design a car that cannot be taken on an unsafe road?

Sure, it could be done, but all the simple ways to do that involve crippling the car's ability to drive *anywhere*.

[NapTime ForTruth]

Re: Safe Browsing API to look up websites

I, for one, am enthusiastic about Google not being able to go anywhere (as illustrated by the attached sign icon)...with the possible exception of "away", which would be the ideal outcome.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Safe Browsing API to look up websites

Oh dear... Is that really your belief about proper security practices?

I guess your are a NodeJS guy?

[sabroni]

Thanks to privacy rules in Europe

Good job we got Brexit done, eh? Last thing we need here is extremists surfing the net securely!!

[Pascal Monett]

I already have Safe Browsing, thank you

Safe from Google, that is. NoScript keeps me very safe, an Ublock Origin shores up the walls.

[Hubert Cumberdale]

Re: I already have Safe Browsing, thank you

Don't forget PrivacyBadger, ClearURLs, and Decentraleyes!

[Anonymous Coward]

Google SafeBrowsing is not good ..

.. by looking at their own VirusTotal results.

YouTube ads are even worse in that respect, happily serving you phishing/malware URLs while other vendors flag those URLs in VirusTotal.

Regulators must force advertisers to never serve sites younger than 1 year old from generic top level domains, and maybe 6 months minimum from hard-to-verify national top level domains. Exceptions are possible with detailed expensive checks. This approach would work as a quarantine and likely reduce negative impact on the general population by 2 orders of magnitude.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Google SafeBrowsing is not good ..

An interesting approach..

But anyone can register a bogus address instantly under even "proper" TLDs.

I agree with your premise though - it pisses me off the number of scam ads that youtube and twitter put through with apparent impunity. I've heard people say "it can't be a scam, the advert was on a reputable site'

Apparently, the UK regulator for TV adverts is also responsible for online adverts that hit UK viewers. If I was ITV or any of the other big commercial broadcasters, I'd be tearing them apart over their obvious inaction.