Google admitted in January what many of us had already suspected for several years That is, Incognito mode does not store browsing history on your machine itself, but Google was tracking users behind the scenes However, Google promised to destroy all this information

This is all thanks to a class action lawsuit that Google settled late last year The lawsuit alleged that Google had been collecting user data in incognito mode and misleading users about how it tracked and collected user data As a result of the settlement, Google made several changes to its incognito mode of operation

But first, it means destroying data collected from millions of users who were using Incognito mode at the time According to the Wall Street Journal, this includes "billions of data points" from users who have been using incognito mode since 2016

Google will also update its disclosures about what data is collected in so-called private browsing mode and give users the option to disable third-party cookies This will be the default setting for Incognito mode for the next five years

The discovery for the lawsuit also revealed that Google executives were aware of the problems Incognito's misunderstanding could cause Chief marketing officer Lorraine Touhill had warned Google CEO Sundar Pichai that Incognito mode should not be referred to as "private" because of the risk of "exacerbating known misunderstandings"

The settlement does not include damages for individuals affected by Incognito Mode tracking; according to the WSJ, plaintiffs' attorneys have already filed at least 50 claims in California courts The original lawsuit sought $5,000 per affected user, but it is unclear how much money individual claimants could receive if their claims are successful

For now, you should be happy that Google is set to delete any data it may have collected during your Incognito browsing session However, it may be small comfort to know that the information goes back eight years and could have been used for a variety of things during that time

And while things may change in the future, remember that Incognito mode is not a substitute for adequate Internet privacy It may prevent browsing history from being stored on a shared computer, but it will not keep you anonymous online