In a few days, more precisely on July 30, Google will launch Chrome 76. Good news for users and a very bad one for many news websites that managed to detect when a user used Incognito Mode and block it.
The most important feature brought by Chrome 76 will be the closing of the breach through which Websites could detect users in Incognito Mode. This was possible by checking FileSystem API from the Chrome browser. In incognito mode, Filesystem API is disabled so that during the navigation the user will leave information on the websites accessed and neither on the computer. The websites used a script checking the availability of Filesystem API, and if it did not answer, the session automatically was detected as an incognito and the user's access was blocked.
With the launch of Chrome 76 on July 30, the Filesystem API behavior will be modified and the websites will no longer be able to detect the Incognito session. At least not by the method used so far.
Boston Globe. The New York Times and Los Angeles Times are just a few of the giant news portals that have not allowed users access to Incognito Mode for long.
Chrome 76 is a Pacoste for the news portals that have Users with paid subscriptions (paywalls). There are many news publications that offer a limited number of articles for free, and users will pay to view the content. This limitation of the number of free articles per user is currently done by tracking cookies. Once entered in incognito mode, the website can no longer check the number of articles viewed by the user and can no longer limit it and invite to pay a subscription.
Another important characteristics brought once with Chrome 76 is Blocking Popup commercials when we leave a website with Escape key (ESC).
Many badly intentional websites use this technique to deliver advertisements or a new web page to users who want to leave the current website. Through a JavaScript code, a new web page in the browser is automatically opened when pressing the Escape key. Google Chrome 76 will end this type of spam.
Firefox has already implemented a similar system to prevent the opening of a popup or a new web page when pressing the Escape key in the browser.
In addition to the two major changes above, Google Chrome 76 will improve security in terms of malware execution in websites and will bring Dark Mode in the web pages.
As for Adobe Flash Player, it will no longer run the automatic content, without the user's action, and that from December 2020 it will no longer be compatible with Google Chrome. Starting from 2021 and Adobe will cease support for Flash.
