Streamlined Chrome settings prioritize deleting all data from a site over individual cookies

Abner Li | Nov 18 2021 - 3:51 pm PT

Google is making a change to Chrome settings that lets users more easily delete the data stored by sites. At the same time, the Google browser is moving the ability to delete individual cookies into DevTools.

Starting with the Chrome 97 Beta, the Privacy and Security settings page will let you “delete all data stored by an individual site” from:

chrome://settings/content/all or Settings > Privacy and Security > Site Settings > View permissions and data stored across files

Google is getting rid of the ability to delete individual cookies from chrome://settings/siteData (or Settings > Privacy and Security > Cookies and other site data > See all cookies and site data). However, the underlying capability will remain “accessible for developers, the intended audience for this level of granularity, in DevTools.”

Developers can visit DevTools to continue to gain access to more technical detail on a per-cookie or per-storage level as needed.

Latest settings vs. Settings that will be removed

The company says this change results in a “clearer experience for users” and is more reflective of what you likely visited settings to do. It also reduces the likelihood of unintentionally breaking a site:

By providing users the ability to delete individual cookies, they can accidentally change the implementation details of the site and potentially break their experience on that site, which can be difficult to predict. Even more capable users run the risk of compromising some of their privacy protection, by incorrectly assuming the purpose of a cookie.

This change will be followed by Chrome removing this functionality from Page Info in the Omnibox to “keep all granular cookie controls in DevTools.”