With Project Strobe, Google is conducting a “root-and-branch review” of third-party developer access to personal data. In May, the company announced that the initiative would look at Chrome Extensions, with new policies coming into effect this October.
In addition to changes for Chrome extensions, Project Strobe is responsible for upcoming restrictions on third-party access of Drive. Similar to Gmail last October, Google is locking down what apps can access user data and verifying the authenticity of those that do.
Over the past year, privacy has been a big topic in the technology space as particularly evident after Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal. Google in early 2018 began a project to analyze third-party developer access in its various services and Android. An issue in Google+ was uncovered as part of Project Strobe, and the company is now taking steps to limit access to user data across all applications.
According to the Wall Street Journal this morning, Google discovered a user data bug in Google+ last spring. However, the issue appears to not have been abused by any third-party developers. The company opted to not disclose the issue, but in response is now shutting down the failed social network for consumers.