None of the vulnerabilities have a ‘critical’ rating. Six of them are given a ‘high’ severity rating, seven are rated ‘medium’ and one is rated ‘low’. Eight were discovered by Google security teams, and reporters of the remaining six received rewards ranging from $1000 to $3500. A total of $9000 was paid. Chrome users can check their current version by selecting the About Google Chrome menu option. This will automatically trigger an update to the latest version if it is not already installed.
The release also includes a Flash update to the latest version, including the latest Flash vulnerability fixes.
This version includes Do Not Track support. DNT is an evolving standard to allow users to opt out of online behavioral tracking. Although a request can be issued, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the visited website will conform. “The effectiveness of such requests is dependent on how websites and services respond, so Google is working with others on a common way to respond to these requests in the future,” notes the Google announcement. The DNT request is not set by default. Users will need to visit the Settings page and check the "Send a ‘Do Not Track’ request with your browsing traffic" box in the Show Advanced Settings section.
Chrome on Windows now supports GPU-accelerated video decoding. Since dedicated graphics chips require less power than the computer’s CPU, the result is less power consumption when viewing video, and longer battery life on portable devices. “In our tests, the battery lasted 25% longer when GPU-accelerated video decoding was enabled. Now Chrome users on Windows will experience longer battery life so they don’t get cut off while watching their favorite YouTube video on repeat,” claims Google.
Finally, this version also makes controlling a visited website’s permissions easier. “Now,” says Google, “simply click on the page/lock icon next to a website’s address in the omnibox to see a list of permissions and tweak them as you wish.” This saves users, it says, “from having to dig through settings pages to find these permissions.”