Master Site Settings in Chrome: A Complete Guide to Customized Browsing
Managing your site settings in Chrome may not always be top-of-mind when you are scrolling the World Wide Web, but these permissions are more important than you think. Websites can request access to your location, camera, microphone, and more, through your browser.
By default, all these settings are set to Always Ask. However, if you really want to optimize your browsing experience and enhance your online security, it is crucial to fine-tune these permissions as you go. Here’s how to toggle your site settings in Chrome for Desktop, Android, and iOS devices.
First Things First: A Word on Cybersecurity
We share everything on the internet these days, from family photos to sensitive banking- and medical-information. That is why it is so important to ensure that you are protecting your data on multiple levels.
State-of-the-art VPN services like NordVPN encrypt your data and disguise your IP address to ensure that you are not left vulnerable to cyberattacks, regardless of which browser you are using.
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Customizing your site settings further protects you from unwanted cookie tracking, location sharing, pop-ups, redirects, and other general internet nuisances that may be able to get around your VPN. Our guide dives into detail on how to start the process.
How to Change All Site Settings in Chrome for All Your Devices
The Chrome site settings, control just about every aspect of how the sites you access, interact with your precious data and information. Fortunately, it takes just a few simple steps to tweak these settings to your liking. Simply follow our step-by-step guide for changing all site settings in Chrome for Desktop, Android, or iPhone and iPad device.
How to Change Site Settings in Chrome from Your Desktop
The process for changing the site settings for all the sites across your desktop device is actually quite simple. All you need to do is:
1. Open Chrome on your desktop.
2. Tap the More icon ⋮ (three dots) on the top right-hand corner of the screen > Settings.
3. Select the Privacy and security tab > Site settings.
4. Browse through the list to change specific settings.
It is important to note that all the changes you make in the site settings menu, will be updated automatically as you go.
Changing the Site Settings on an Android Device
The process to change these preferences on Android devices is very similar. Simply follow these steps:
1. Start by opening the Chrome app.
2. Tap the More icon ⋮ (three dots) in the top right-hand corner > Settings.
3. Navigate to the Advanced heading and click on Site Settings.
4. Now you can tap on each setting to customize them to your liking.
The Process for iPhone and iPad users
If you want to change all site settings from your iPad or iPhone, the process will look a little different. Here’s how to do it:
1. Open the Chrome app.
2. Select the More icon ⋮ (three dots) > Settings.
3. Click on Content Settings.
4. Use the menu to change any of the listed permissions.
How to Change Site Settings in Chrome For Specific Sites
Instead of changing the permissions for all the sites you visit at once, you can also set preferences for individual sites. This process can be outlined as follows:
- Open Chrome and then visit the site in question.
- Click on the slider icon to the left of the web address and select Site Settings.
- Navigate to your desired permission category to make any necessary changes or adjustments.
As an added bonus, there is no need to worry about those sites that you have not visited for a while. Chrome automatically revokes the permissions of sites that you have not visited recently.
Take Control Today: Why You Shouldn’t Ignore Chrome’s Site Settings
All site settings in Chrome are an important part of your daily browsing experience. That is precisely why it is essential to ensure that you have tailored them to your exact privacy, security, and convenience standards. After all, all of this customization and optimization should only take a couple of seconds.
Frequently Asked Questions
What permissions can be changed?
Once you enter the site settings menu, you will see that there are various preferences for you to set and edit. This includes:
- Third-party cookies
- Location
- Camera and microphone
- Motion tracking
- Notifications
- Pop-ups and redirects
- Intrusive Ads
- Background sync
- Automatic downloads
- Protected content
- Sound
- USB
- On-device site data
Why do I need to manage all site settings in Chrome?
Permission management is a crucial aspect of cybersecurity. As we have outlined in the list above, the site settings in Chrome are expansive. Some permissions are granted by default to websites, such as the permission to save cookies to the browser. These cookies are often essential for the website to function. For example, Facebook needs to save cookies if you want the website to remember your session.
However, all of these settings can be dialed-in according to your personal preferences. It is important to control what you are giving these sites access to to protect your own privacy, enhance your security, manage your device’s resources, and personalize your browsing experience.
How do I revert the changes to site settings in Chrome?
The great thing about changing your site settings is that these settings can be changed back, just as easily. To revert your settings, simply tap the Reset permissions button.
Tip: if your device does not have a Reset permissions button, you can manually change the controls back to what they were before, by using the above-mentioned steps to access the site settings menu.
I have changed my site settings, but some functions are still not working?
These permissions and the site settings are for Chrome only. They have nothing to do with the settings on the Android, Windows or iOS-level. If, for example, you don’t let Chrome use your camera, a website requesting to use it will not be able to even if you allow it. You will see a prompt from Chrome asking for permission to use the camera, and then the website will be able to use it.
Similarly, these permissions only work inside Chrome and not other browsers. If you’ve allowed camera access for Facebook in Chrome, it doesn’t mean that you’ve allowed it to access the camera in Firefox. Firefox, and all other browsers, will have their own settings panel for managing these permissions. Regardless of which browser you use, there will always be a way to change them whenever you want.
nice
Not supporting this site in my chrome
I really wish YouTube wasn’t blocked
I am having real difficulties with Chrome continuing to revert to default settings for sites even after I specify some custom settings for a particular site. For this particular site I require that Flash always be allowed. Every time I load Chrome & this site comes up the browser is blocking the site content. ie. It’s blocking the Flash content that I have repeatedly previously set to always Allow for this site. What am I doing wrong ? Why is Chrome constantly reverting my custom site settings for this particular site to the default settings of the browser ?