During a recent audit, Google found that some third-party browsers based on Chromium were able to provide their users with integration with Chrome sync, Click to Call and other features unique to the Google browser version. As a result, a small percentage of users were able to sign in to their Google accounts through the browser wrapper and synchronize their data! Your favorites, among other things, could be added to the overall experience just as they would be on the old Google Chrome.
Google took the open source code from Chromium and devoted countless hours to it with its own in-house development teams to create unique and competitive experiences. Third-party browsers that were able to access Chrome Sync have not been publicly identified through the Chromium Blog, but as a result, Google is limiting access to its private Chrome APIs as of March 15, 2021.
The company guarantees that users who were able to benefit from this accidental access during this short period will continue to have access to the complete data of their accounts through the web or through the official Google Chrome browser. In addition, Chrome sync is now optional and not mandatory, so users who want to use Chrome without syncing to the cloud can do so, although the benefits are limited. Google Takeout also offers users the ability to obtain a copy of their data for protection.
This is an interesting and strange situation, but it is good that Google has taken control of the situation. Say what you want about Google, but they work hard with very smart people to create these unique and competitive features. If I created something, I wouldn’t want others to take it and use it elsewhere. It’s like eating a McDonald’s hamburger at Starbucks – it might be cool, but don’t be that guy.
