The latest version of the popular Google Chrome browser will bring a safety-oriented update for users. As announced, Google Chrome will now alert users about untrusted browser extensions whenever users come across them. This update is to arrive as an addition to the existing Enhanced Safe Browsing feature in Chrome.
Chrome Now Alerts For Untrusted Extensions
As elaborated in a recent blog post, Google has introduced a new safety feature with the Chrome 91 browser version. This new feature will alert Chrome users about extensions from untrusted developers whenever they try installing them. In this way, the browser will strive to protect the users from potential cyber threats.
Enhanced Safe Browsing will now offer additional protection when you install a new extension from the Chrome Web Store. A dialog will inform you if an extension you’re about to install is not a part of the list of extensions trusted by Enhanced Safe Browsing.
For the trusted extensions, Google’s list will include the add-ons from developers who comply with the Chrome Web Store Developer Program Policies.
Currently, roughly 75% of extensions in the Chrome browser meet the criteria. For the rest, it will take developers a few months of continued compliance with the policies to become trusted.
Another New Feature In Google Chrome 91
Alongside warning users about untrusted add-ons, Google has rolled out another safety update with the latest browser version. This feature typically aims at ensuring downloads of safe files only.
Whenever users attempt to download a file, Chrome will run a preliminary safety check for potential risks or known threats. Chrome will analyze the file’s metadata for this and generate an alert if it detects anything suspicious.
The user can then choose to send the file for detailed analysis to Google Safe Browsing, which will block any risky downloads.
For any downloads that Safe Browsing deems risky, but not clearly unsafe, Enhanced Safe Browsing users will be presented with a warning and the ability to send the file to be scanned for a more in depth analysis.
If you choose to send the file, Chrome will upload it to Google Safe Browsing, which will scan it using its static and dynamic analysis classifiers in real time. After a short wait, if Safe Browsing determines the file is unsafe, Chrome will display a warning.
This will help the users to avoid accidental downloads of malicious files. Yet, users can choose to bypass the warning and continue downloading the file if they want to.
After scanning, the file will be removed from Google Safe Browsing a while later.
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