Google Chrome’s Incognito mode and InPrivate just became even more private, as they no longer save copied text and media to the clipboard, according to Windows Latest. The changes apply to Windows 11 and 10 users and were rolled out in 2024. However, neither Microsoft nor Google documented it.
Even though this change is not a recent feature, it’s odd that neither tech giant thought it was worth mentioning. Previously, the default setting was that when a user saved text or images to the clipboard history, it was synced with Cloud Clipboard on Windows. Moreover, accessing this synced content was as simple as pressing the Windows and V keys, which poses a security risk, especially when using incognito mode.
This change truly makes Chrome Incognito more private since whatever happens in Chrome Incognito should stay there, just as it should. On March 25, 2024, Microsoft presented a code update that prevents copied content from being saved to the clipboard history or synced to the cloud when a user is in Incognito Mode. Furthermore, the software giant also recognized that Windows has unique clipboard formats to leave out sensitive data from syncing, but platforms such as Android do not function in the same way.
The Windows clipboard formats that prevent copied content from being saved in history are:
- ExcludeClipboardContentFromMonitorProcessing → Stops saving to history & cloud
- CanIncludeInClipboardHistory=0 → Stops saving in history
- CanUploadToCloudClipboard=0 → Stops cloud sync
The changes to Chrome Incognito also apply to macOS and iOS, though the implementation differs slightly. The system clears the clipboard after copying on macOS to stop sync on iPhones and Macs. Interestingly, Google has not officially said anything about this, but could this change result from the class-action lawsuit that cost the company $5 billion?
