{"id":6045,"date":"2014-07-23T10:00:56","date_gmt":"2014-07-23T14:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.nccomputertech.com\/?p=6045"},"modified":"2014-07-23T10:00:56","modified_gmt":"2014-07-23T14:00:56","slug":"researchers-reveal-3-devious-ways-online-trackers-shatter-your-privacy-and-follow-your-digital-footsteps-pcworld","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2014\/07\/23\/researchers-reveal-3-devious-ways-online-trackers-shatter-your-privacy-and-follow-your-digital-footsteps-pcworld\/","title":{"rendered":"Researchers reveal 3 devious ways online trackers shatter your privacy and follow your digital footsteps"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Three stealthy tracking mechanisms designed to avoid weaknesses in browser cookies pose potential privacy risks to Internet users, a new research paper has concluded.<\/p>\n

The methods\u2014known as canvas fingerprinting, evercookies and cookie syncing\u2014are in use across a range of popular websites. The findings, first reported by Pro Publica, show how such tracking is important for targeted advertising but that the privacy risks may be unknown to all but the most sophisticated web users.<\/p>\n

Profiling Web users, such as knowing what Web pages a person has visited before, is a central component of targeted advertising, which matches advertisements with topics a person may be interested in. It is key to charging higher rates for advertisements.<\/p>\n

Cookies, or data files stored by a browser, have long been used for tracking, but cookies can be easily blocked or deleted, which diminishes their usefulness.<\/p>\n

The methods studied by the researchers are designed to enable more persistent tracking but raise questions over whether people are aware of how much data is being collected.<\/p>\n

The researchers, from KU Lueven in Belgium and Princeton University, wrote in their paper that they hope the findings will lead to better defenses and increased accountability \u201cfor companies deploying exotic tracking techniques.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe tracking mechanisms we study are advanced in that they are hard to control, hard to detect and resilient to blocking or removing,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n

Although the tracking methods have been known about for some time, the researchers showed how the methods are increasingly being used on top-tier, highly trafficked websites.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Full Story: Researchers reveal 3 devious ways online trackers shatter your privacy and follow your digital footsteps | PCWorld<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Three stealthy tracking mechanisms designed to avoid weaknesses in browser cookies pose potential privacy risks to Internet users, a new […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[7,8],"tags":[225,849],"class_list":["post-6045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-security","category-social-media","tag-cookies","tag-privacy"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/papNkV-1zv","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8855,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2016\/03\/07\/verizons-supercookie-fcc-settlement-requires-opt-in-for-some-tracking\/","url_meta":{"origin":6045,"position":0},"title":"Verizon’s ‘Supercookie’ FCC settlement requires opt-in for some tracking","author":"NCCT","date":"March 7, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"By Jared Newman | PCWorld Verizon Wireless is getting slapped with a fine and privacy requirements after inserting undeletable tracking cookies into users\u2019 browsing sessions. As part of a settlement with the Federal Communications Commission, Verizon will have to get users\u2019 permission to share these \u201csupercookies\u201d with third-party partners. However,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Security"","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6892,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2014\/11\/19\/att-kills-the-permacookie-stops-tracking-customers-internet-usage-for-now\/","url_meta":{"origin":6045,"position":1},"title":"AT&T kills the ‘permacookie,’ stops tracking customers’ Internet usage (for now)","author":"NCCT","date":"November 19, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"In recent weeks, Verizon and AT&T have been caught up in a privacy firestorm over their use of so-called \u201cpermacookies,\u201d a method of tracking what their users do while browsing the Web with the intent of sharing that data with advertisers. Verizon\u2019s permacookie program lives on, but AT&T has ceased\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Security"","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7380,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2015\/01\/09\/super-cookies-can-track-you-even-in-private-browsing-mode-researcher-says\/","url_meta":{"origin":6045,"position":2},"title":"‘Super cookies’ can track you even in private browsing mode, researcher says","author":"NCCT","date":"January 9, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"If there's one thing websites love to do it's track their users. Now, it looks like some browsers can even be tracked when they're in private or incognito mode. Sam Greenhalgh of U.K.-based RadicalResearch recently published a blog post with a proof-of-concept called \"HSTS Super Cookies.\" Greenhalgh shows how a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Security"","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8751,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2015\/11\/16\/state-sponsored-cyberspies-inject-victim-profiling-and-tracking-scripts-in-strategic-websites\/","url_meta":{"origin":6045,"position":3},"title":"State-sponsored cyberspies inject victim profiling and tracking scripts in strategic websites","author":"NCCT","date":"November 16, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"By Lucian Constantin | PCWorld Web analytics and tracking cookies play a vital role in online advertising, but they can also help attackers discover potential targets and their weaknesses, a new report shows. Security researchers from FireEye have discovered an attack campaign that has injected computer profiling and tracking scripts\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Security"","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3042,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2013\/07\/26\/mozilla-experimenting-with-firefox-api-for-content-personalization\/","url_meta":{"origin":6045,"position":4},"title":"Mozilla experimenting with Firefox API for content personalization","author":"NCCT","date":"July 26, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Mozilla is experimenting with an interesting personalization experience, suggesting a new Firefox API that would collect browser activity and provide it to websites so that they could prioritize content based on your interests. For example, if you've been reading a lot about cars recently around the internet, you could provide\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Software"","block_context":{"text":"Software","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/software\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6071,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2014\/07\/30\/privacy-focused-tails-os-compromised-how-to-stay-safe-until-its-patched\/","url_meta":{"origin":6045,"position":5},"title":"Privacy-focused Tails OS compromised: How to stay safe until it’s patched","author":"NCCT","date":"July 30, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Vulnerabilities in the Tails operating system could reveal your IP address, but you can avoid trouble by taking a couple of precautions. Tails, a portable operating system that employs a host of privacy-focused components, plans to patch flaws contained in I2P, a networking tool developed by the Invisible Internet Project\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Security"","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6045","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6045"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6045\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6045"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6045"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6045"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}