Does Google mask HTTP REFERER?

[Tonearm]

I remember reading a while back that Google was going to mask the HTTP_REFERER. I've noticed lately that I'm not getting the amount of referrer data I used to. Has Google implemented this now?

[leafgreen]

not getting the amount of referrer data I used to

Where? Your weblogs? Your cpanel stats apps? But anyway, practically everyone is relying on Google Analytics for this data. I don't think they're masking anything there.

[Tonearm]

The data is surely in Analytics to encourage people to use the service, but is Google altering/blocking HTTP_REFERER before it is sent to the browser? This would affect server logs for example.

[tedster]

If anyone is using Google's https search [webmasterworld.com], then there is no http referrer. The encrypted, secure search can be a good privacy action for people using public wi-fi, as just one example. But it does mean you'll get the traffic with no referer.

[Tonearm]

Got it, https only. Thank you.

[phranque]

HTTP_REFERER is a HTTP Request header so it is purely a function of the User Agent (browser) and has zero relevance to Google search results or any other server's function.