Soon, anyone who visits the search engine and YouTube in Europe while not logged in or in incognito mode will see the same "reject all" and "accept all" buttons on the first screen. Users, if they want, can still choose to customize their preferences by clicking on "other options". Those who are logged in can change their tracking options via the Google Data and Privacy menu.
The new feature was launched in early April in France, but will be extended "to the rest of the space European economy, in the United Kingdom and in Switzerland, ”said Google in a post on its blog. "In a short time, users of the region will have a new choice of cookies, which can be accepted or rejected with a single click."
Image via Google
This news follows the fine of 150 million euros imposed by the French data protection agency Cnil on Google for non-compliance with the European rules on cookies. Previously, in fact, the company offered users various options to customize their cookie preferences on their own, with a single button in bold type that suggested "accept all". If users wanted to customize their preferences, they were forced to navigate through different menus.
Pop-up cookies are the result of the EU general data protection regulation, or GDPR, which came into force in 2018 The rules require companies to give users the option to consent or opt out of being tracked on the Web. In recent months, regulators have argued that companies needed to offer users a clear way to deny consent to cookies. The European Center for Digital Rights (Noyb), which has long been fighting on this issue, said 90% of users click to accept all cookies, but only 3% actually want them.
Google said the recent change was due to the need to adapt to the rules developed in Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain and the UK. "We are committed to meeting the standards of this updated guide and have worked with a number of these authorities," the company said, also promising the development of new privacy tools.
Google Doodle marks Earth Day with sobering images of climate crisis
Earth Day is intended to draw attention to the threats facing our planet (Getty Images)
Google is marking Earth Day with a doodle showing time-lapse satellite footage of melting glaciers, deforestation, coral bleaching and retreating snow cover to highlight the scale of the climate crisis.
Imagery and photographs from Google Earth Timelapse and The Ocean Agency have been used to create four Gifs that will be shown on the search engine throughout the day.
These show glacial retreat at the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania between December 1986 and 2020, and glacial melt in Sermersooq, Greenland, between December 2000 and 2020.
Glacier retreat in Greenland (Google)
A coral bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef near Lizard Island in Australia between March 2016 and October 2017, and deforestation of the Harz forests in Elend, Germany, between December 1995 and 2020 are also featured.
The sobering images are intended to draw attention to the severity of climate change.
The doodle comes as Sir David Attenborough has been named a Champion of the Earth by the UN’s Environment Programme.
Accepting the prestigious award, the 95-year-old naturalist said on the subject of climate change: “We know what the problems are and we know how to solve them. All we lack is unified action.”
Speaking in February 2021, Sir David told the United Nations’ Security Council (UNSC) session on climate that it was “too late” to avoid catastrophic suffering for the world’s most vulnerable people because of climate change.
“Please make no mistake - climate change is the biggest threat to security that modern humans have ever faced.
“There is no going back - no matter what we do now, it's too late to avoid climate change and the poorest, the most vulnerable, those with the least security, are now certain to suffer,” he added.
Inaugurated in 1970, Earth Day occurs each year on 22 April and is marked by an estimated one billion people.
Its aim is to raise awareness and mobilise action about the threats to our planet.
This year’s event follows the release of the latest IPCC reports showing that the world is heading towards stronger, more frequent disasters fuelled by the climate crisis, with little time to reverse course.