Google Chrome version 76 has darkmode and Incognito mode is now untraceable.

Google released version 76 of Chrome yesterday. The browser update feature allows users to update their browser to the latest version. The current version does not contain any new major changes to the browser’s user interface, but some developments in version 76.0.3809.87 are interesting to mention.

To start with, the browser no longer remembers website specific settings for Flash, which means that users will have to enable Flash themselves every time they use it. According to ZDNet, this change is intended to phase out Flash gradually by the end of 2020. With the release of version 55 in December 2016, Chrome has already switched to HTML5 by default.

Furthermore, Chrome contains 76 fixes to prevent websites from detecting or browsing in incognito mode via the FileSystem API. Google believes that websites should respect users’ privacy, rather than taking reactive measures to recognize incognito-browsing.

Dark-/light modes and escape pop-ups

Chrome 76 also changes the way Chrome interprets the Escape key. This update is being rolled out as part of a safety-related change designed to make it more difficult for sites to display unwanted pop-ups.

Sites can now also display a dark mode or light mode via CSS code, by recognizing which mode is enabled in the users’ OS. This means that sites can make buttons for this in their layout. So if a user uses Chrome 76 on for example MacOS with a dark theme, a website can also switch to a dark theme, so that it matches the OS.

Further changes include security updates, changes in the Chrome open source project, changes and removed features for developers and changes in the Chrome V8 Javascript engine. There are also new Chrome-for-Android updates, but these are not yet specified anywhere.