Privacy Sandbox

A group of advertising technologies that Google proposed as an alternative to third-party cookies. In October 2025, the retirement of major APIs such as the Topics API was announced.

Oct 31, 2026 / About 1 min read

Analytics

Privacy Sandbox is the collective name for a group of web advertising technologies that Google proposed as an alternative to third-party cookies. It was developed as a set of APIs that make ad targeting and measurement possible while protecting user privacy.

Its main components included the Topics API and the Attribution Reporting API. The Topics API is a mechanism in which the browser locally infers interest categories from the user's browsing history so that they can be used for ads based on interests / preferences. The Attribution Reporting API is a technology for measuring conversions by linking them to ads, and it generates event-level reports and summary reports.

However, this initiative did not proceed as originally planned. In July 2024, Google presented a proposal to introduce a mechanism that lets users choose, instead of retiring third-party cookies in Chrome. In April 2025, it announced that it would keep the current approach, in which users choose how third-party cookies are handled in the settings screen, and would not show a new prompt. Then in October 2025, it announced the retirement of the Topics API / Attribution Reporting API / Protected Audience API and others. The same announcement stated that it would continue to support CHIPS and FedCM and would also keep Private State Tokens.

With URL shortener services, clicks are recorded on the server side that handles the redirect, so this measurement is less likely to be affected by the availability of alternative APIs on the browser side.

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Related Terms

Cookie

A small piece of data stored in the browser by a website. Cookies enable login persistence, shopping cart retention, and user tracking.

Browser Fingerprinting

A technique that combines unique browser and device characteristics to identify users without relying on cookies.

Attribution Model

A model that defines how conversion credit is distributed across the multiple touchpoints a user interacts with before converting. Used to optimize advertising investment.

Cohort Analysis

An analytical method that groups users who performed a specific action during the same time period and tracks their behavior over time.

Data Retention Period

The duration for which collected access data and click logs are stored. Balancing privacy regulations with analytics needs is critical.

First-Party Data

User data that a company collects directly itself (behavior history, registration information, purchase records, and so on). It is drawing attention against the backdrop of how browsers handle third-party cookies and of privacy regulations.

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Short URL Analytics 101: How to Read and Act on Click Data

An explanation of how to read and use the access analytics obtained from short URL click data. We introduce analysis methods by device / region / time of day, points to watch in bot filtering, the impact of privacy regulations, and how to build an improvement cycle.

GDPR and Short URLs - Privacy-First Link Tracking Compliance Guide

Learn how short URL services handle personal data under GDPR. Covers consent requirements, data retention policies, and privacy-first tracking alternatives.

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