chrome://histograms/

[ergophobe]

chrome://histograms/

[ergophobe]

OK.... nobody bit...

If you enter that into Chrome, you will see data on everything Chrome is collecting about you - how often you use autocomplete, media interaction habits. Everything you do since last clearing the cache is in there. It goes on for dozens of screens.

[Mackin USA]

Don't have & will not have chrome

EVIL

[JasonD]

I clicked, just didn't know wtf it was.

However, i am probably a bad use case. I sold myself out to the various versions of the Borg eons ago. FB and G own me!

[ergophobe]

FB and G own me!

Me too... still it was surprising to see the massive amount of data.

[rcjordan]

>I clicked,

Right after it was posted.

> just didn't know wtf it was.

Same. I recognized a few blurbs and figured it was evil. ...and that eg would eventually explain it to me.

[Brad]

Nice find EG.  I'm not a chrome user but it is good to know these things.

Also, it will keep me away from Chrome!

[Rooftop]

Nice find EG.  I'm not a chrome user but it is good to know these things.

Also, it will keep me away from Chrome!

Just because they are the only browser to give you a way of viewing it, it doesn't mean that they are the only ones collecting it!

I've just been flicking through some of the charts (Chrome is my primary browser).  I'm wondering whether some of this has broader interest.  I also quite like the potential of using Chrome to collect data on a subset of site.  (Visit a cluster of sites and instantly know details such as how many cookies they're dropping, average cookie expiry, how many used fav icons of whatever.  I'm sure that there are better examples if you dig, but it seems like easy data for anyone into making infographics.

[Brad]

I'm certain other browsers collect data too, especially that new Windows 10 browser from MS.  However Google has a long-long history of data mining/spying on users of their free stuff even after denying it (remember Google Toolbar.) 

I trust Google to find a way of sending that data back to the Mothership by default.

[rcjordan]

I am running Privacy Badger aggressively on Chrome and am impressed with what it dredges up.  I wonder how PB effects histogram?

[ergophobe]

I am running Privacy Badger aggressively on Chrome and am impressed with what it dredges up.  I wonder how PB effects histogram?

Clear your cache, check the histograms and surf for a while and then check again.

I don't think there's anything particularly private, so here's mine with out Privacy Badger running... all 27,000 lines of it.

[rcjordan]

chrome://histograms/DNS = metrics about  DNS performance

AsyncDNS.ResolveSuccess =  the distribution of resolution time (ms)

[Rooftop]

I trust Google to find a way of sending that data back to the Mothership by default.

I am sure that they do send some of it back. I'd expect that to be the case with most browsers though.

Software logs stuff.  Lots of it.  I'm not in anyway surprised by either point and software would be pretty crappy if it didn't.   I am surprised that they give users on view on it - although that is only a bonus to privacy if we know it is complete (my guess - not).   There may well be data in there that users wouldn't want them to log or they might be using data in ways they shouldn't.   Likewise that might not be the case.    Giving users a view on that data does nothing to either suggest or detract from either. 

Immediately assuming that the presence of data (which we all knew must exist) is evidence of wrong-doing smacks more than a little of Googlenoia. 

I suspect that somewhere there is a man in a dark room looking up all those variables to see if they are logging something they shouldn't .  I'll wait to hear from him.