Many of us select our favorite browser—Chrome, Safari, Edge, whatever—based on its privacy controls. Once we set our privacy controls to our satisfaction, we think we’re protected.
Not always.
Let’s say you’re in the Facebook app and click on a link. Facebook isn’t going to send you off to your default browser to access the link. Because Facebook has a special feature just for you.
“The in-app browser for Facebook and Instagram allows people to open web links within the Facebook or Instagram mobile app on iOS or Android. For example, when a customer sees a business ad on the Facebook app and taps on it, web links in the ad open in the in-app browser by default.
“The in-app browser uses industry-standard technology to enable customers to seamlessly view and take action on websites without leaving the Facebook app.”
Because you want a seamless experience…don’t you? DON’T YOU? YOU DO. MARKY MARK SAYS SO.
And naturally there’s something in it for Facebook also. Because the primary purpose of any social app is to keep you in that app forever and ever. If you suddenly switch to Chrome you have left the Meta ecosystem (which also includes Instagram, lest we forget) and have entered the Google ecosystem.
This is bad…for Facebook.
If we are locked within Facebook’s walled garden, then Meta captures all our data.
“Facebook and Instagram applications use embedded browsers that automatically open when you click on external links within the app, rather than opening your default browser. This behavior allows Meta to inject JavaScript code into visited websites, enabling tracking of user interactions including form inputs, button clicks, and purchases made on external sites.”
Now obviously your own browser can do the same thing, but it’s relatively easy to clear your browser data, including cookies. It’s harder to clear the data from the in-app browsers within Facebook and Instagram. Once you find where the control is hidden this week, you can Clear Data (which differs from Clear Cache).
By the way, privacy-sucking in-app browsers are not solely provided by Marky Mark. Tik Tok does it also. The Amazon app uses JavaScript, but Felix Krause could not detect any tracking.
Other apps do not use JavaScript in their in-app browsers, including Reddit, Robinhood, Snapchat, and X.
But you can test yourself. Go to your favorite social app, type https://inappbrowser.com/ to your feed, and click on the link. The site may no longer be active.
Bredemarket 