Google Chrome 70 Beta Lands With Support For Android And Mac Fingerprint Scanners
Chrome fans will be glad to hear that the Chrome 70 beta has landed and that it is packing some very cool features that will enable improved security on some devices. The big new feature for macOS and Android users is support for Touch ID or fingerprint sensors; the hardware is enabled by default as part of the Web Authentication API. One of the cool things about that implementation is that websites with support for the API allow the use of Touch ID for 2-factor authentication.
Google is also removing the Android and iOS build numbers from the user-agent identification string that is visible to websites in Chrome 70 to increase privacy. Chrome for iOS will show the build number as 15E148 from now on, and it will be completely removed on Android devices. With that build-number no longer visible nefarious users trying to target fingerprinting and other exploits are prevented.
Chrome 70 will also begin to show the flashing red "Not Secure" icon when visiting a page that isn’t secured with HTTPS if the user attempts to enter personal data or passwords on a standard HTTP page. The Chrome 70 beta is also designed to exit full-screen mode when dialog boxes, file pickers, and authentication or payment prompts appear. Exiting full-screen is meant to ensure that the user has the proper context when deciding on dialogs or alerts.
A decoder for AV1 format video is included for Chrome, macOS, Windows, and Linux, but there are no encoding capabilities for AV1. Google also enables Chrome 70 to support Web Bluetooth on Windows 10 bringing it on par with Android, Chrome OS, and macOS that have had that support since Chrome version 56. That feature allows websites to communicate securely with a nearby Bluetooth device.
Earlier this week, Chrome fans weren't glad at all to hear that in Microsoft's latest Windows 10 update, the software giant will start to harass Chrome and Firefox users to use Edge instead of downloading their preferred browser.
