This week Apple introduced a new feature to iPhones and iPads that will allow users to say no to having their data collected by apps. Similarly Google announced it will phase out cookies for ads in its popular Chrome browser. While these are steps in the right direction, it doesn’t mean you can’t be tracked online.
If you use your Facebook or Google account to register and login to other digital services such as Twitter, Pinterest, online stores and others, you effectively allow these services to share your interactions with Facebook and Google. These could be your online visit, what you purchased, or what you searched for.
Some companies go a step further and use a technique called device fingerprinting that uniquely identifies a user by combining attributes such as the operating system, device type, browser version and IP address. Even benign looking interactions such as tagging friends on a photo lets companies know where you are, with whom and what you are doing. Read the entire story here.
Check out how the PAN Privacy App can help better protect your privacy.
