Business Maverick

Business Maverick

Google to Let Android Users Opt Out of Tracking, Following Apple

A Google Inc. Pixel 5 smartphone is demonstrated for an arranged photograph taken in Tokyo.

Google will let Android mobile software users opt out of being tracked by advertisers on their smartphone applications, following an earlier move by rival Apple Inc. to bolster privacy on iPhones.

The option will become available in late 2021, with a Google Play services update, the Alphabet Inc. unit said on a support website. Developers will no longer be able to see a user’s unique advertising ID if that person has declined to receive personalized ads. Unlike Apple’s feature, users won’t be opted out of ad tracking by default.

For months, Google has been mulling a way to give Android users more control over ad tracking with a less stringent approach than Apple’s, Bloomberg reported. In May, Google said it would create a safety section in its Play Store in 2022 so Android users can see what data developers collect about them and share, plus give access to additional privacy and security information.

Apple roiled the mobile advertising industry in April when it debuted its App Tracking Transparency feature, which requires users to opt in to being tracked by apps for personalized advertising. Developers expect to lose revenue from the change because most consumers likely won’t agree to have their data collected.

Google said the Play services rollout will affect apps running on Android 12 devices starting in late 2021 and migrate to other devices with Google Play in early 2022.

Gallery

Comments - Please in order to comment.

Please peer review 3 community comments before your comment can be posted

X

This article is free to read.

Sign up for free or sign in to continue reading.

Unlike our competitors, we don’t force you to pay to read the news but we do need your email address to make your experience better.


Nearly there! Create a password to finish signing up with us:

Please enter your password or get a sign in link if you’ve forgotten

Open Sesame! Thanks for signing up.

We would like our readers to start paying for Daily Maverick...

…but we are not going to force you to. Over 10 million users come to us each month for the news. We have not put it behind a paywall because the truth should not be a luxury.

Instead we ask our readers who can afford to contribute, even a small amount each month, to do so.

If you appreciate it and want to see us keep going then please consider contributing whatever you can.

Support Daily Maverick→
Payment options

Daily Maverick Elections Toolbox

Feeling powerless in politics?

Equip yourself with the tools you need for an informed decision this election. Get the Elections Toolbox with shareable party manifesto guide.