Google is rolling out a new security warning for Android Chrome users
Not all security warnings are a bad thing, in fact, some are to be welcomed with open arms. Such is the case with this new secure connection warning for Android users of Google’s Chrome web browser. Although users will need to take action to enable it now, doing so could prevent you from sleepwalking into a security nightmare. Here’s what you need to know.
Android Users Get Always Secure Connections Warning On Chrome
The security warning in question comes in the form of the “always use secure connections” warning that users of the desktop version of the Chrome web browser will be very used to by now. As first spotted by the good folks at MSPoweruser, Google is now starting to roll out an important and completely related security update for users of Chrome on the Android platform as well.
The always use secure connections function is a vitally important one when it comes to staying safe and secure while browsing the web, be that from your laptop or smartphone. Why so? Because it gives the user better control over the way in which insecure websites, those that do not implement the HTTPS protocol, by default. Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure encrypts data sent between a user and a website and is an extension of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol, the HTTP bit at the start of a website address, which forms the standard and insecure method of sending information across the internet.
When the always use secure connections option is enabled, it will automatically attempt to upgrade the connection from standard HTTP to secure HTTPS where possible. Critically, it also flags a warning to users before visiting an insecure site.
Secure Connection Warning Comes To Android Users At Last—How To Activate It
The official notification at the googlesource chromium review site, is necessarily highly technical, which also makes it inaccessible for most readers. However, thankfully, we can translate it into normal-speak and show you how to enable this currently experimental “canary” feature on your Android smartphone.
- Download and open the experimental version of the Android Google Chrome app, known as Canary, that lets users test new settings. Beware that this can be unstable, so you install it at your own risk.
- Head for Chrome://flags where you can find a setting called “Allow enabling Balanced mode for HTTPS-First mode.“
- Once enabled, restart the Chrome app and hit the three-dot menu.
- Select Settings|Privacy and security|Security|Always Use Secure Connections and finally choose between the options to warn for insecure public sites and warn for insecure public and private sites. I’d recommend the latter for completeness.