4 ms·

Why is E2E opt-in?

• pvg 3y ago
  I don't know, I don't make Chrome. But if I had to guess, most people want to be able to lose a key (in this case a completely separate password) without losing all their syncable browser stuff. Edit: a fun way to think through the design constraints is to think about "how come Apple default-e2e syncs all sorts of things without an extra password but Chrome doesn't"
• hyperhopper 3y ago
  Same same reason it always would be: it is inconvenient and can lead to loss of data. Lose your old device, get a new device, and you won't have the key. A normal user going through this flow would be furious. Only technically competent users understand that e2e has downsides and how to mitigate those.
  • heavyset_go 3y ago
    Given that Google already stores passkeys and other encryption credentials, I'm sure they could come up with an scheme to securely manage E2EE keys across devices.
    • rossjudson 3y ago
      Given that the most common transition here is I have 1 device -> I have 0 devices because I lost my phone I think what you mean is "Google can do this for users with more than one device". Which they do. E2EE has meaning, and being convenient to recover isn't in it.