If Gmail looks a little different to you right now, you’re not wrong. A new message ad for Advanced Safe Browsing started appearing in Gmail recently. Displayed at the top of your message list, it encourages users to turn on the “enhanced protection against malicious emails” feature—and for many people, it provides better protection when browsing the web.
First launched in 2020, Safe Browsing gives you more features in Gmail and Chrome. It scans URLs, downloads, and browser extensions for any malicious or harmful content such as malware and phishing attempts. Unlike Standard Security, which relies on a well-known list of malicious websites, Advanced Safe Browsing uses real-time information collected from your browsing history (including information about your PC and examples of the sites you visit) to analyze threats.
Privacy users may find Safe Browsing more concerning, as Google sees things like your downloads. It also temporarily syncs the data collected during Safe Browsing with your Google account when you sign in. This is especially true if you already allow Google to track and store data your activities on the Website and Apps, which many people do to help. Your online activity is already being monitored.
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To turn on Advanced Secure Browsing, click the link in the Gmail banner to jump straight to your account. Then turn the toggle. If you still haven’t received the banner idea, you can also check out the manual settings:
- Open yours Google Account Settings
- Choose Security
- Scroll down to Best browsing experience for your account
- Click on Turn on Advanced Secure Browsing
- Click on the toggle to turn on the settings
When Enhanced Safe Browsing is enabled in your account, Enhanced Safe Browsing in Chrome also works. However, for it to work in Chrome, you must be logged in, and syncing (without a password) must be enabled.
If you decide that Advanced Safe Browsing isn’t for you, you can turn it off in your preferences. Google says it can take up to 24 hours to cancel.