Ever feel like advertisements are ... following you? From webpages to your social media feeds and maybe even as commercials on your favorite streaming platform?
You’re not alone. You’re being tracked. We all are.
Internet tracking is virtually standard practice for web browsers and internet-connected devices, with websites watching how we engage with their content to improve user experiences and advertisers poring over our data to target us with relevant products and services, among other rationales.
This doesn’t necessarily mean you or your data collected is at risk, but shouldn’t we all know how and why our data is being collected? It’s our data, after all. That’s precisely what we’re exploring here — the what, why, and how of internet tracking, plus tips to cover your digital tracks, if you choose to.
What is internet tracking: An overview + FAQs
Internet tracking is an analysis of online users’ behaviors, generally for the purpose of delivering a more personalized browsing experience. It’s also referred to as browser tracking, digital tracking, data tracking, or web tracking.
In simpler terms, internet tracking is how websites study our behavior when we visit them. And it’s more common than you might think, as 79 percent of websites apparently do it. Worth mentioning is that website tracking is not illegal, but it’s also not widely understood.
Why do websites track us?
They say the more you know, the more you understand. That’s pretty much the premise of internet tracking: The more websites know about us, the more they understand us — and, ideally, they use that intel to better serve us.
That can translate into a quicker and more convenient browsing experience on websites. You might even consider and find value in how YouTube or Netflix is so good at suggesting the show you want to binge-watch next. Or that Amazon manages to show you the product you need to buy right when you open the site.
But internet tracking isn’t entirely about user experience. For perspective, here are few more reasons websites track us:
- To create revenue streams: Some websites don’t only store your user data but they might sell it, too, to advertising companies looking to target you with relevant products.
- To help aid law enforcement: Some law enforcement agencies monitor online user behaviors to spy on suspicious individuals.
- To measure business performance: Businesses reference their website analytics, meaning what consumers engage with most on their sites, to inform their content strategies or product releases.
- To monitor a website’s usability: Keeping a close eye on how website visitors engage with a website can help websites pinpoint and correct any areas that are falling short.
How do websites track us?
Websites can track us in many ways, and the list has only gotten lengthier with time. But cookies remain among the most commonly used data tracking methods today, with more than 40 percent of websites using some type of cookie.
Also known as HTTP cookies or tracking cookies, cookies are essentially a storage file for how you interact with a specific website, remembering everything from what you’ve added to your cart on shopping sites to what news articles you click on news sites and even language preferences you select.
You might think of tracking cookies like notetakers. And because tracking cookies are specific to a single website, this is why you must “accept” or “decline” cookies every time you visit a new site. Traditional tracking cookies store their notes about you directly on a website, whereas third-party cookies store your user data in a separate location that might be accessible to, as the name indicates, third parties like advertisers. Third-party cookies are often the culprit of those ads that pop up on your social media feed after you’ve visited a shopping website. More than 80 percent of web traffic contains third-party cookies.
Here are a few other commonly used data tracking methods today, including what user data they collect:
- Web beacons, AKA web bugs or tracking beacons, track how you engage with a specific webpage, including content you click. They also can be used in email exchanges to determine if a message has been received or opened.
- IP addresses are attached to all internet-connected devices and required to visit a website, which might remember yours and use it to track your activity.
- Session replay scripts are programs that record a website visitor’s activity on a website, including their mouse movement, clicks, and scrolls.
- Favicons are considered supercookies in that they operate similarly but are much more difficult to decline or remove.
- Account tracking keeps tabs on your online activity while logged into a specific online account or platform and is often an internet tracking method that online users must grant permission for.
- Mouse tracking, AKA cursor tracking, is a data tracking software that records online users’ mouse movements to analyze how they interact with a website.
- Browser fingerprinting stitches together information about your device — including its operating system, language preferences, time zone, etc. — to create a unique identifier that's used to trace all of your online activity. This can also be conducted through canvas fingerprinting, which recognizes your HTML5 canvas elements.
- Cross-device tracking, also considered deterministic or probabilistic tracking, matches up your browsing habits across devices.
- Click-through rate is a measure of times an online user clicks on and visits a piece of content suggested or advertised to them. Websites use the metric to inform their content strategies or advertiser opportunities.
Finally, Federated Learning of Cohorts (FLoC) is a new-age internet tracking method whereby online users aren’t individually identified and tracked. Rather, they are categorized into a cohort of like-minded online users that is collectively tracked. FLoCs made headlines earlier this year when Google announced it will be leaning on them to phase out its use of third-party cookies, all in the name of prioritizing users’ online privacy — a worry of website tracking.
Should we be worried about website tracking?
There are indeed a few causes for concern when it comes to data tracking, most of which regard our data privacy and security and transparency surrounding where user data is stored and who has access to it. That’s because the more complacent we are about sharing our data — meaning accepting cookies, for instance —the farther our data is out of our hands.
At its best, internet tracking results in trailer-made digital worlds for online users, with the most relevant of advertisement and content delivered right to our homepages. And hey, 43 percent of consumers prefer these personalized advertisements and 23 percent admit they don’t mind their data being tracked to get them. At its worse, however, internet tracking can result in user data being shared with third parties and stored in databases susceptible to cyber threats. It also can open up a can of internet privacy issues.
At the end of the day, every individual values their online privacy differently which means some individuals might be more worried about data tracking than others. Understanding how — and where — we’re tracked online can help put you on the right track to avoid being followed online, if you so choose.
Where our data is tracked online
Nowadays, our activity can be tracked from the moment we login into our internet-connected devices. But that doesn’t mean it has to be. Just consider the following places and platforms you visit every day, the potential cyber threats website tracking poses on them, and quick tips to throw internet trackers off your tracks.
Search engines and internet tracking
If you’ve ever wondered, “Is Google tracking me?” The answer is yes. Google and other search engines could be considered the primary source of internet tracking. By some counts, Google tracks almost 80 percent of all web traffic. And while their data tracking means are changing, replacing third-party cookies with FLoC, Google and other search engines can harness other internet tracking methods such as fingerprinting and web beacons to deliver a personalized browsing experience.
POTENTIAL THREATS: “Accepting” third-party cookies means you’re accepting the reality that your user data is being taken out of your hands and given to a third party who’s charged with protecting it — and potentially compromising it.
HOW NOT TO BE TRACKED:
Social media and internet tracking
Social media sites are another common offender of internet tracking — but is it really an offense if they’re piecing together potential friends you might know and delivering news and products you might like? Of course, that answer is entirely subjective. In any event, you might be interested to know Facebook tracks 18 percent of all web traffic and Twitter tracks 7 percent of all traffic, harnessing the powers of account tracking, web beacons, and tracking cookies to help do it.
POTENTIAL THREATS: Cybercriminals could access data broker sites housing your customer data, thanks to third-party cookies, and peddle false advertisements to you containing malware. This is also known as malvertising.
HOW NOT TO BE TRACKED:
- Enable ‘do not track.’
- Opt out of targeted advertising.
- Opt out of data broker sites.
Shopping sites and internet tracking
Ever added a few items to your cart at an e-commerce site and perhaps accidentally closed out of the window, just to find that once you revisit the site all of your items are still saved in your cart? That’s thanks to tracking cookies and potentially account tracking, if you’re logged in to an account. These are just a few of the ways shopping sites track us online, with Amazon accounting for 17 percent of web traffic tracked.
POTENTIAL THREATS: Creating a user account on shopping sites means you’re saving potentially confidential data, like home addresses and payment methods, for later use. This information could be compromised in the event of a data breach.
HOW NOT TO BE TRACKED:
- Don’t create account profiles and instead checkout as a guest.
- Don’t allow cookie tracking on websites.
- Use a tracker blocker.
How to not be tracked online: 11 tips
Even the smartest of cookies don’t realize that throwing internet trackers off your tail is about more than just clearing your tracking cookies.
Put yourself on the right track to protect your data privacy and security with these simple tweaks to your browsing habits, plus tips to avoid being tracked from the start.
1. Adjust your privacy settings across devices
Protecting your online privacy begins with adjusting your privacy settings across these common devices.
For their pocket-size reputation, mobile devices pack a bunch of options to adjust their privacy settings:
- Reset your advertising identifiers, which will create a new unique identifier associated with apps that track your activity.
- Disable location tracking in apps you feel don’t necessarily need to know your location.
- Revisit your tracking controls after software updates to ensure apps haven’t reset to track your activity.
- Disable ad personalization in your device’s privacy settings if you wish to not receive targeted ads.
When it comes to computers, it’s all about tracking cookies and adjusting which ones you want monitoring you. Go to the privacy settings of every browser you use and comb through the sites you’re currently giving access to and disable them accordingly. Heads up: It’s entirely voluntary for sites to recognize that you’ve disabled cookies, so this is not a surefire solution.
As internet-connected devices, smart TVs can also study our activity. Familiarize yourself with the privacy settings on your device and opt-out of any apps or platforms that you don’t want following your activity.
2. Enable ‘do not track’
In your browser settings, you can enable “do not track” which means you’re sending a request to your browser to not track your browsing activity. At the end of the day, this is just that — a request, and it’s up to every individual website to honor it.
3. Don’t allow cookie tracking on websites
The one is simple: Just click “decline” or “no” when you visit a new website and it asks for your permission to track you using cookies. The downside of this is that declining cookie tracking could also disable certain website features and it’s not mandatory for websites to honor your request.
4. Use tracker blockers
Tracker blockers are browser plug-ins meant to stop internet trackers from collecting information about you. Some popular examples include Privacy Badger and Ghostery*.
5. Use an ad blocker
Another browser plug-in, ad blockers do just that — block ads. While this doesn’t actually stop your data from being collected, it can prevent you from receiving targeted advertisements stemming from website tracking.
6. Go incognito
Browsing in an incognito window means no cookies should be saved to your browser. Still, your IP address will be viewable to all sites you visit, because it’s required.
7. Look for HTTPS
Want peace of mind that your data is being handled by a secure site? Simply look for “HTTPS” at the beginning of all URLs you’re visiting, as this is an indication of a secure site.
8. Consider a VPN
A VPN anonymizes your browsing activity through encryption, even down to throwing off the geolocation of your IP address. Consider using one to throw internet trackers off your tail, too.
9. Use a private search engine
Some browsers are built on the premise of protecting your private information and swear off data tracking to do it — but you may have to pay to use these private search engines. Some popular examples include Startpage and DuckDuckGo.
10. Opt out of targeted advertising
Groups like Digital Advertising Alliance and the Network Advertising Initiative have created tools to help you opt out of targeted advertising, similar to registering your name for a do-not-contact list. Heads up: These opt-out tools are often device-specific, so you’ll need to use them on every browser and every device.
11. Opt out of data broker sites
Data brokers collect your personal information and sell it to others to verify your identity, detect fraud, or determine eligibility for everything from credit to insurance, plus market products to you. You can use an opt-out tool to take back your data from these, as well.
Internet tracking isn’t meant to be malicious, but it can come off that way, depending on the degree to which you value your online privacy.
To return to the adage, “the more you know, the more you’ll understand”... about whether or not you want to be tracked online. Now, you can adjust your habits as you see fit. Happy browsing!
* The inclusion of websites, apps, brands, service providers or links does not imply endorsement or support of any company, product, and/or provider listed herein, nor should it be inferred that NortonLifeLock is endorsed by, sponsored by, or affiliated with such brands.
Je, umewahi kuhisi kana kwamba matangazo ya biashara yanakufuata? Kuanzia kwenye wavuti hadi kwenye media ya kijamii, unaweza pia kuunda matangazo ya biashara kwenye wavuti yako ya kupendeza. Wewe si peke yako. Wewe ni kufuatiliwa. Sote tuko hivyo. Ufuatiliaji wa mtandao ni mazoezi ya kawaida kwa vivinjari vya wavuti na vifaa vilivyounganishwa na mtandao, na tovuti zinaangalia jinsi tunavyohusika na yaliyomo ili kuboresha uzoefu wa watumiaji na watangazaji wanachunguza data zetu ili kutulenga na bidhaa na huduma zinazohusiana, kati ya sababu zingine. Hii haina maana lazima wewe au data yako zilizokusanywa ni katika hatari, lakini si sisi wote wanapaswa kujua jinsi na kwa nini data yetu ni kukusanywa? Ni data yetu, baada ya yote. Hiyo ni hasa nini sisi ni kuchunguza hapa - nini, kwa nini, na jinsi ya kufuatilia mtandao, pamoja na vidokezo vya kufunika nyimbo yako digital, kama wewe kuchagua. Ufuatiliaji wa mtandao ni uchambuzi wa tabia za watumiaji wa mtandaoni, kwa ujumla kwa kusudi la kutoa uzoefu wa kuvinjari wa kibinafsi zaidi. Pia inajulikana kama kufuatilia kivinjari, kufuatilia digital, kufuatilia data, au kufuatilia mtandao. Kwa maneno rahisi, ufuatiliaji wa mtandao ni jinsi tovuti zinavyojifunza tabia yetu tunapozitembelea. Ni jambo la kawaida kuliko unavyofikiri, kwani asilimia 79 ya tovuti zinafanya hivyo. Inastahili kutajwa ni kwamba kufuatilia tovuti si kinyume cha sheria, lakini pia si kueleweka sana. Kwa nini tovuti zinatufuatilia? Wanasema kwamba kadiri unavyojua zaidi, ndivyo unavyoelewa zaidi. Hiyo ni pretty sana dhana ya kufuatilia mtandao: Zaidi tovuti kujua kuhusu sisi, zaidi wao kuelewa sisi <unk> na, bora, wao kutumia kwamba intel ili vizuri kututumikia. Hiyo inaweza kutafsiri katika uzoefu wa kuvinjari haraka na rahisi zaidi kwenye tovuti. Unaweza hata kuzingatia na kupata thamani katika jinsi YouTube au Netflix ni nzuri sana katika kupendekeza show unataka binge-kuangalia ijayo. Amazon pia inakuonyesha bidhaa unazohitaji kununua mara tu unapofungua tovuti. Lakini kufuatilia mtandao si kabisa kuhusu uzoefu wa mtumiaji. Kwa mtazamo, hapa ni sababu chache zaidi tovuti kufuatilia sisi: - Kuunda mito ya mapato: Baadhi ya tovuti si tu kuhifadhi data yako ya mtumiaji lakini wanaweza kuuza, pia, kwa makampuni ya matangazo kuangalia kulenga wewe na bidhaa husika. - Kusaidia utekelezaji wa sheria: Baadhi ya mashirika ya utekelezaji wa sheria kufuatilia tabia ya mtumiaji mtandaoni kupeleleza watu tuhuma. - Kupima utendaji wa biashara: Biashara rejea tovuti yao uchambuzi, maana nini watumiaji kushiriki na zaidi kwenye tovuti zao, kuelimisha mikakati yao maudhui au kutolewa bidhaa. - Kufuatilia usability ya tovuti: Kuangalia kwa karibu jinsi wageni wa tovuti wanavyoingiliana na tovuti inaweza kusaidia tovuti kutambua na kurekebisha maeneo yoyote ambayo yanafadhaika. Tovuti zinatufuatiliaje? Tovuti zinaweza kutufuatilia kwa njia nyingi, na orodha hiyo imekuwa ndefu zaidi kadiri wakati unavyopita. Cookies bado ni moja ya njia za kufuatilia data zinazotumiwa zaidi leo, na zaidi ya asilimia 40 ya tovuti zinatumia aina fulani ya cookie. Pia inajulikana kama kuki za HTTP au kuki za kufuatilia, kuki ni faili ya kuhifadhi kwa jinsi unavyoingiliana na tovuti maalum, ukikumbuka kila kitu kutoka kwa kile umeiongeza kwenye kikapu chako kwenye tovuti za ununuzi hadi makala za habari unazobonyeza kwenye tovuti za habari na hata chaguo la lugha unayochagua. Unaweza kufikiria kufuatilia kuki kama notetakers. Na kwa sababu kufuatilia kuki ni maalum kwa tovuti moja, hii ni kwa nini lazima <unk>kubali<unk> au <unk>kukataa<unk> kuki kila wakati wewe kutembelea tovuti mpya. Cookies za kufuatilia za jadi huhifadhi maelezo yao juu yako moja kwa moja kwenye wavuti, wakati cookies za mtu wa tatu huhifadhi data yako ya mtumiaji katika eneo tofauti ambalo linaweza kupatikana kwa, kama jina linavyodokeza, watu wa tatu kama watangazaji. Cookies za chama cha tatu ni mara nyingi wahalifu wa matangazo hayo ambayo pop up juu ya chakula yako ya vyombo vya habari vya kijamii baada ya wewe <unk>ve alitembelea tovuti ya ununuzi. Zaidi ya 80% ya trafiki ya wavuti ina kuki za mtu wa tatu. "Hizi ni baadhi ya njia za kufuatilia data zinazotumiwa sana leo, ikiwa ni pamoja na data ya mtumiaji wanayoikusanya: ""Web Beacons"" au ""Tracking Beacons"" - kufuatilia jinsi unavyoingiliana na ukurasa maalum wa wavuti, ikiwa ni pamoja na maudhui unayoyachagua." Pia zinaweza kutumiwa katika kubadilishana barua pepe ili kuamua kama ujumbe umepokelewa au kufunguliwa. Anwani za IP ni kushikamana na vifaa vyote internet-kuunganishwa na zinahitajika kutembelea tovuti, ambayo inaweza kukumbuka yako na kutumia kufuatilia shughuli yako. - Session replay scripts ni programu ambazo kurekodi shughuli ya mgeni wa tovuti kwenye tovuti, ikiwa ni pamoja na harakati zao za panya, bonyeza, na scrolls. - Favicons ni kuchukuliwa supercookies katika kwamba wao kazi sawa lakini ni vigumu sana kukataa au kuondoa. Ufuatiliaji wa akaunti huhifadhi maelezo juu ya shughuli zako mtandaoni wakati umeingia kwenye akaunti au jukwaa maalum la mtandaoni na mara nyingi ni njia ya ufuatiliaji wa mtandao ambayo watumiaji wa mtandaoni lazima wape ruhusa. Mouse kufuatilia, AKA cursor kufuatilia, ni data kufuatilia programu ambayo rekodi watumiaji wa mtandaoni'mageuzi ya panya kuchambua jinsi wao kuingiliana na tovuti. - Browser fingerprinting stitches pamoja habari kuhusu kifaa chako <unk> ikiwa ni pamoja na mfumo wake wa uendeshaji, upendeleo wa lugha, eneo la muda, nk.  kuunda kitambulisho cha kipekee ambacho hutumiwa kufuatilia shughuli zako zote mtandaoni. Hii inaweza pia kufanyika kupitia canvas fingerprinting, ambayo inatambua HTML5 canvas vipengele yako. - Cross-kifaa kufuatilia, pia kuchukuliwa deterministic au uwezekano kufuatilia, mechi juu ya tabia yako ya kuvinjari katika vifaa. Kiwango cha kubonyeza ni kipimo cha mara ambazo mtumiaji wa mtandaoni huchagua na kutembelea kipande cha yaliyomo yaliyopendekezwa au kutangazwa kwao. Tovuti hutumia kipimo hicho kuarifu mikakati yao ya maudhui au fursa za watangazaji. Hatimaye, Federated Learning of Cohorts (FLoC) ni njia mpya ya kufuatilia mtandao ambapo watumiaji wa mtandaoni hawajatambuliwa na kufuatiliwa kibinafsi. Badala yake, wao ni categorized katika kundi la kama-minded watumiaji wa mtandaoni kwamba ni pamoja kufuatiliwa. FLoCs ilifanya vichwa vya habari mapema mwaka huu wakati Google ilitangaza itategemea yao kuondoa matumizi yake ya kuki za mtu wa tatu, yote kwa jina la kuweka kipaumbele kwa faragha ya watumiaji mtandaoni - wasiwasi wa ufuatiliaji wa wavuti. Je, tunapaswa kuwa na wasiwasi kuhusu kufuatilia tovuti? Kuna kweli sababu chache za wasiwasi linapokuja suala la ufuatiliaji wa data, ambayo zaidi ya yote inahusu faragha yetu ya data na usalama na uwazi unaozunguka ambapo data ya mtumiaji imehifadhiwa na ni nani anayeweza kuipata. Hiyo ni kwa sababu zaidi sisi ni kuhusu kushiriki data yetu - maana ya kukubali kuki, kwa mfano - mbali zaidi data yetu ni nje ya mikono yetu. Kwa hali nzuri, ufuatiliaji wa mtandao unatoa ulimwengu wa dijiti uliofanywa kwa trela kwa watumiaji wa mtandaoni, na matangazo na yaliyomo yanayohusiana zaidi yanatolewa moja kwa moja kwenye kurasa zetu za nyumbani. 43% ya watumiaji wanapendelea matangazo ya kibinafsi, na 23% wanakubali kuwa hawajali data zao zikifuatwa. Hata hivyo, katika hali mbaya zaidi, kufuatilia mtandao kunaweza kusababisha data ya mtumiaji kugawanywa na watu wa tatu na kuhifadhiwa katika hifadhidata zinazoweza kuathiriwa na vitisho vya mtandao. Pia inaweza kufungua chupa ya masuala ya faragha ya mtandao. Mwishowe, kila mtu huthamini faragha yake mtandaoni tofauti, ambayo inamaanisha watu wengine wanaweza kuwa na wasiwasi zaidi juu ya ufuatiliaji wa data kuliko wengine. Kuelewa jinsi <unk> na wapi <unk> sisi ni kufuatiliwa online inaweza kukusaidia kuweka juu ya kufuatilia haki ya kuepuka kuwa kufuatiwa online, kama wewe hivyo kuchagua. Wakati data zetu zinafuatwa mtandaoni, shughuli zetu zinaweza kufuatiliwa kutoka wakati tunapoingia kwenye vifaa vyetu vilivyounganishwa na mtandao. Lakini hilo halimaanishi kwamba ni lazima iwe hivyo. Fikiria tu maeneo na majukwaa yafuatayo unayowatembelea kila siku, vitisho vya uwezekano wa mtandao ambavyo tovuti ya ufuatiliaji inaweka juu yao, na vidokezo vya haraka vya kutupa wafuatiliaji wa mtandao kutoka kwa nyimbo zako. Injini za utafutaji na ufuatiliaji wa mtandao Ikiwa umewahi kujiuliza, "Je, Google inanifuatilia?" Jibu ni ndiyo. Google na injini nyingine za utafutaji zinaweza kuchukuliwa kuwa chanzo kikuu cha ufuatiliaji wa mtandao. Kulingana na takwimu, Google hufuatilia karibu asilimia 80 ya trafiki yote ya wavuti. Na wakati njia zao za kufuatilia data zinabadilika, kubadilisha kuki za mtu wa tatu na FLoC, Google na injini zingine za utafutaji zinaweza kutumia mbinu zingine za ufuatiliaji wa mtandao kama vile alama za vidole na beacons za wavuti kutoa uzoefu wa kuvinjari wa kibinafsi. "Kukubali kuki za mtu wa tatu inamaanisha unakubali ukweli kwamba data yako ya mtumiaji inachukuliwa kutoka mikononi mwako na kupewa mtu wa tatu ambaye anashtakiwa kuilinda na uwezekano wa kuihatarisha.""" Jinsi ya KUWA KUSIWA: Mitandao ya kijamii na ufuatiliaji wa mtandao Tovuti za mitandao ya kijamii ni mhalifu mwingine wa kawaida wa ufuatiliaji wa mtandao <unk> lakini ni kosa kweli ikiwa wanakusanya marafiki wa uwezekano ambao unaweza kujua na kutoa habari na bidhaa ambazo unaweza kupenda? Bila shaka, jibu hilo ni la kibinafsi kabisa. Facebook inafuatilia asilimia 18 ya trafiki yote ya wavuti na Twitter inafuatilia asilimia 7 ya trafiki yote, ikitumia nguvu za kufuatilia akaunti, beacons za wavuti, na kuki za kufuatilia kusaidia kufanya hivyo. "Kupitia ""kuchunguza"" kwa wavuti, wahalifu wa mtandao wanaweza kupata tovuti za wakala wa data ambazo zina data ya mteja wako, shukrani kwa kuki za mtu wa tatu, na kukusambaza matangazo ya uwongo yanayohusisha programu hasidi." Hii pia inajulikana kama malvertising. Jinsi ya KUWA HAKUTAFANWA: - Weka "usifuatilie". - Chagua kutokufuatilia matangazo ya lengo. - Kujiuzulu kutoka tovuti data broker. Ukiangalia tovuti za ununuzi, unaweza kuona kwamba vitu vilivyoongezwa kwenye kikapu chako kwenye tovuti ya e-commerce na kufungwa kwa bahati mbaya nje ya dirisha, na mara tu unapotembelea tovuti hiyo, vitu vyote vimehifadhiwa kwenye kikapu chako. Hiyo ni shukrani kwa kufuatilia kuki na uwezekano wa kufuatilia akaunti, kama wewe ni logged katika akaunti. Hii ni moja ya njia za tovuti za ununuzi za kufuatilia watumiaji wetu mtandaoni, na Amazon inawakilisha asilimia 17 ya trafiki ya wavuti iliyofuatwa. Tisho linalowezekana: Kuunda akaunti ya mtumiaji kwenye tovuti za ununuzi inamaanisha unahifadhi data zinazoweza kuwa za siri, kama anwani za nyumbani na njia za malipo, kwa matumizi ya baadaye. Habari hii inaweza kuathiriwa katika tukio la uvunjaji wa data. Jinsi ya kutofuatwa: - Usiunda maelezo ya akaunti na badala yake ukaguzi kama mgeni. - Usiruhusu kufuatilia cookie kwenye tovuti. - Tumia kizuizi cha kufuatilia. Jinsi ya kutofuatwa mtandaoni: vidokezo 11 Hata wajanja zaidi wa kuki hawajui kwamba kutupa wafuatiliaji wa mtandao kutoka kwa mkia wako ni zaidi ya kufuta tu kuki zako za kufuatilia. Jifunze jinsi ya kulinda faragha na usalama wa data yako na tweaks hizi rahisi kwa tabia yako ya kuvinjari, pamoja na vidokezo vya kuepuka kufuatiliwa. 1. Uwe na mtazamo wa kweli Kuhifadhi faragha yako mtandaoni huanza na kurekebisha mipangilio yako ya faragha kwenye vifaa hivi vya kawaida. Kwa sifa yao ya ukubwa wa mfuko, vifaa vya rununu vinakamilisha chaguzi nyingi za kurekebisha mipangilio yao ya faragha: - Reset vitambulisho vyako vya matangazo, ambayo itaunda kitambulisho kipya cha kipekee kinachohusiana na programu ambazo hufuatilia shughuli zako. - Disable eneo kufuatilia katika programu unahisi hawana lazima haja ya kujua eneo lako. - Kurudia udhibiti wako wa kufuatilia baada ya sasisho la programu ili kuhakikisha programu hazijawekwa upya kufuatilia shughuli yako. - Kuzima matangazo ya kibinafsi katika kifaa chako mazingira ya faragha kama unataka kupokea matangazo ya lengo. Linapokuja kompyuta, ni wote kuhusu kufuatilia kuki na kurekebisha ambayo unataka kufuatilia wewe. Nenda kwenye mipangilio ya faragha ya kila kivinjari unachotumia na kuchunguza tovuti unazotoa sasa na kuzima ipasavyo. Heads up: Ni hiari kabisa kwa maeneo ya kutambua kwamba umekuwa disabled kuki, hivyo hii si suluhisho surefire. Kama vifaa vilivyounganishwa kwenye mtandao, televisheni zenye akili zinaweza pia kusoma shughuli zetu. Jifunze juu ya mipangilio ya faragha kwenye kifaa chako na uondoke kwenye programu au majukwaa yoyote ambayo hutaki kufuatilia shughuli zako. 2. Uwezekano wa kupata Kuwezesha <unk>not track<unk> Katika mipangilio ya kivinjari chako, unaweza kuwezesha <unk>not track<unk> ambayo inamaanisha unatuma ombi kwa kivinjari chako kutofuatilia shughuli yako ya kuvinjari. Mwishoni mwa siku, hii ni tu kwamba <unk> ombi, na ni juu ya kila tovuti ya mtu binafsi kuheshimu. 3. Uwe na mtazamo wa kweli Usiruhusu kufuatilia kuki kwenye tovuti Moja ni rahisi: Bonyeza tu <unk>kukataa<unk> au <unk>hapana<unk> wakati unatembelea tovuti mpya na inauliza ruhusa yako ya kufuatilia wewe kwa kutumia kuki. Hasara ya hii ni kwamba kupungua kwa kufuatilia kuki pia kunaweza kuzima vipengele fulani vya wavuti na sio lazima kwa tovuti kuheshimu ombi lako. 4. Uwe na uhakika Vizuizi vya Tracker ni programu-jalizi za kivinjari zinazolenga kuzuia wafuatiliaji wa mtandao kukusanya habari juu yako. Mifano fulani maarufu inatia ndani Privacy Badger na Ghostery*. 5. Uwe na mtazamo mzuri. Tumia ad blocker Plug-in nyingine ya kivinjari, ad blockers kufanya tu kwamba <unk> kuzuia matangazo. Wakati hii haina kweli kuacha data yako kutoka kukusanywa, inaweza kuzuia wewe kutoka kupokea matangazo ya lengo yanayotokana na kufuatilia tovuti. 6. Uwe na uhakika Nenda incognito Kuangalia katika dirisha incognito ina maana hakuna kuki inapaswa kuhifadhiwa kwenye kivinjari chako. Bado, anwani yako ya IP itaonekana kwa tovuti zote unazotembelea, kwa sababu inahitajika. 7. Uwe na mtazamo gani? HTTPS: Unataka amani ya akili kwamba data yako inashughulikiwa na tovuti salama? Angalia tu <unk>HTTPS<unk> mwanzoni mwa URL zote unazotembelea, kwani hii ni dalili ya tovuti salama. 8. Uwe na mtazamo gani? VPN ni njia ya kuhifadhi shughuli zako za kuvinjari kwa njia ya encryption, hata chini ya kutupa nje ya eneo la anwani yako ya IP. Fikiria kutumia moja kutupa tracker mtandao mbali mkia wako, pia. 9. (a) Kwa nini? Tumia injini ya utafutaji binafsi Baadhi ya browsers ni kujengwa juu ya msingi wa kulinda habari yako binafsi na kuapa mbali data kufuatilia kufanya hivyo <unk> lakini unaweza kuwa na kulipa kutumia injini hizi za utafutaji binafsi. Baadhi ya mifano maarufu ni pamoja na Startpage na DuckDuckGo. Kumi. "Kama ilivyoelezwa hapo juu, ""Kundi kama Digital Advertising Alliance na Network Advertising Initiative zimeunda zana za kukusaidia kuchagua kutoka kwa matangazo ya lengo, sawa na kusajili jina lako kwa orodha ya ""usiguse.""" Heads up: Hizi zana opt-out ni mara nyingi kifaa maalum, hivyo unahitaji kutumia yao juu ya kila kivinjari na kila kifaa. 11. (a) Kwa nini? Wakala wa data hukusanya habari yako ya kibinafsi na kuuza kwa wengine ili kuthibitisha utambulisho wako, kugundua udanganyifu, au kuamua haki ya kila kitu kutoka kwa mkopo hadi bima, pamoja na bidhaa za soko kwako. Unaweza kutumia chombo cha kujiondoa kuchukua data yako kutoka kwa hizi, pia. Ufuatiliaji wa mtandao haukusudiwa kuwa na madhara, lakini inaweza kutokea kwa njia hiyo, kulingana na kiwango ambacho unathamini faragha yako mkondoni. Kurudi kwa msemo, <unk> zaidi unajua, zaidi wewe <unk> utaelewa <unk>... kuhusu kama au si unataka kuwa kufuatiliwa online. Sasa, unaweza kurekebisha mazoea yako kama unavyoona inafaa. Kutafuta furaha! Kuingizwa kwa tovuti, programu, bidhaa, watoa huduma au viungo haimaanishi uthibitisho au msaada wa kampuni yoyote, bidhaa, na au mtoa huduma iliyoorodheshwa hapa, wala haipaswi kuhitimishwa kwamba Norton Lifelight inasaidiwa na, kufadhiliwa na, au kuhusishwa na bidhaa hizo.