Google is testing the omission of the lock on Chrome’s URL bar, which indicates that a connection is via https. Instead, the company uses an arrow that, when clicked, provides information about the connection. According to Google, the lock is confusing.
Google refers to the outcome of its own research as the reason for the test. This would show that only 11 percent correctly associate the lock icon with the presence of an https connection. Users would frequently incorrectly conclude that the site itself is trustworthy.
In addition, Google is reconsidering the use of the lock, because according to the company we are moving towards an https first future. For example, Chrome 94 gets an https first mode , where the browser tries to make all connections via https and displays full-page warnings if that fails. Firefox has had such a mode since version 83 .
As a test, Chrome 93 does not get a lock with https connections, but an arrow with which a user can request more information about the connection. Google hopes that this information will be easier to find. If there is no https connection, Chrome will still show a warning.
