Google Chrome is getting an upgrade that can help secure devices connected to a private or home network.
Google outlined its plans a message about the Chrome platform status page, explaining that the new feature will act as a monitor for website requests from sites looking to access your private network and ensure they come from safe sources.
The more exact reasoning behind the feature, as Google explains in the post, is:
“To prevent malicious websites from moving through the user agent’s network position to attack devices and services that were reasonably believed to be inaccessible from the Internet at large because they are located on the user’s local intranet or on the user’s machine.”
What we know about the new feature (so far)
Called “Private Network Access Controls for Navigation Requests,” the feature will inspect what source the request to communicate with your private network is coming from – and whether it is secure. On the other hand, it will check in with your device to make sure it has permission to access the private network. Developers are currently being assisted by Google to get their websites accredited as safe resources.
This feature has not yet been assigned to a specific Chrome release, according to Neowin, but it is expected to be included in the release of Chrome 123 or 124 for desktop PCs and Android devices. It’s currently in testing and won’t start the review processes yet unless you’re a developer working with Google on this feature (so your current version of Chrome won’t be able to do this until the update rolls out to the wider public).