Google Chrome will block unwanted redirects redirect

Google’s Chrome browser will block unwanted redirects on the internet in the future. The changes to the browser will be delivered in three phases, the first of which can already be tried out in the developer preview of the program.

The first phase of the measures involves blocking redirects deployed by third-party iframes, often advertisers, without the user interacting with those elements. When such a redirect is blocked, the user will receive a notification. This feature is already included in the so-called ‘Canary’ version of Chrome, which is a pre-beta with version number 64.

Chrome 65 tackles redirects that work by opening the desired target page in a new tab while the current tab navigates to another page that the user has not requested. Instead of this effect, navigation will be as expected by the user: navigating to the destination in the current tab. This adjustment cannot be attempted at the moment.

The last measure targets the hard-to-understand redirects, such as iframes disguised as, say, the controls of embedded video players, or invisible iframes that spread across an entire page and capture all clicks for a redirect. Google does not explicitly state that this function will then be in Chrome 66.

What the search giant does state is that all three functions will be in the stable version of Chrome in January. Google is also releasing a toolset with which website administrators can check the extent to which their websites have these types of redirects in-house. Google gives administrators 30 days to adjust their sites, but the company does not say when those 30 days will start. After that period, the browser will block all redirects and pop-ups from the websites in question by default.

The various versions of Chrome hold 47.1 percent of the browser market, according to NetMarketShare, which means that Google’s demands will most likely be met.

At the same time, Google is also working on restrictions around the automatic playback of videos on the web. The first forms of that measure can also be found in Chrome 64.