When you click a link while using another app, your browser (like Chrome) or a Custom Tab typically opens. Facebook’s in-app browser, which is run by the Android System WebView, is used to display web pages. The technology that powers the default Facebook app’s in-app browser will change soon.
While still based on Chromium, Facebook for Android will soon use its own browser engine that is not shared by the vast majority of other Android applications.
The first justification given by Meta for this decision is security, as its WebView alternative will be updated concurrently with the Facebook app:
We’ve noticed over the past few years that many Android users update their Facebook app but do not update their Chrome or WebView apps, which could pose security threats and have a bad impact on the user experience.
With this new strategy, security will be ensured by Meta doing “rebases of our WebView onto the latest versions of Chromium at regular intervals” to obtain the most recent security updates.
Another rationale for changing is stability. Facebook wishes to address the issue that whenever Android System WebView is updated via the Play Store, apps that use it frequently crash as a result of the upgrade’s normal course of operation. There will only be one Facebook app update moving forward. Additionally, Meta anticipates increased rendering stability and performance, and it intends to “continue to submit any substantial modifications to upstream Chromium.”
The business, which is gaining more end-to-end control in this way, does not anticipate any additional UI/experience changes for users of the Facebook app. As for the rollout:
This Chromium-Based WebView has undergone preliminary testing, and we will soon start making it available to more Facebook app users with suitable devices.
Unfortunately, Facebook does not use Custom Tabs, which share cookies with your primary browser and reduce the number of times you have to re-login to websites. You can utilise pre-existing password and payment method managers with Custom Tabs as well.
