4 Steps to Stop Online Tracking

**beanlicker** · 10-30-2012, 12:57 AM

Online targeting for advertising is becoming more sophisticated. For instance, Facebook is currently testing Facebook Exchange, which lets Facebook approved partners show you ads for products that you almost bought on their websites — the moment you return to Facebook. This type of advertising can get pretty annoying. You didn't buy that item for a reason, so why should you have to see it again?

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a consumer privacy advocacy group, posted a simple, 4-step guide to stopping online tracking, because merely activating the "Do Not Track" feature in your Web browser is not enough. Microsoft has made Do Not Track the default in its IE10 browser, which began shipping this week in Windows 8. But Microsoft has cautioned that no website is required to honor the no-tracking signal, and Yahoo was the first site to announce last week that it would not recognize the signals from IE10 users

Install ad blocker with extras
First, you'll need an ad blocker with extra protection. EFF recommends installing Ad Block Plus, a free extension for Chrome, Firefox and IE9. In addition to blocking ads, Ad Block Plus can be extended with an "easy privacy" option that will block a variety of trackers.

Change cookie settings
Next, add a second layer of protection by changing your browser's cookies settings. This will prevent sites you visit from adding bits of code to collect information about sites you use and what you're doing — such as abandoning a shopping cart at check out.

The following directions apply to Chrome , but you can adjust other browsers in similar ways. Find Chrome's Settings menu, which is indicated by a set of three parallel lines or a gear icon in the top-right corner of your browser. Choose Settings, scroll down to Advanced Settings and select Privacy. Click Content Settings and then click "Keep local data

only until I quit my browser" and "Block third-party cookies and site data."

Block Referrers

Third step, install EFF's extension Referer Control (a phrase that has been misspelled since its inception by system programmers, so don't blame EFF). This program lets you turn off the referrers mechanism. Turned off by default in browsers, referrers allows personal information to be released to websites. After installing, scroll down and find "default referer for all other sites" and click Block.

Activate HTTPS

Finally, install another browser add-on, HTTPS Everywhere, also from EFF. The extension expands coverage for HTTPS by encrypting all of your computer's signals, so that outside parties can't snoop or tamper with your private conversations with websites.

**joebob** · 10-30-2012, 05:41 AM

A proxy server can help work wonders for keeping you hidden also.

**PAiN** · 10-30-2012, 09:42 PM

Great post... I use ad block plus it works great.

**beanlicker** · 10-31-2012, 01:57 AM

Originally Posted by joebob

A proxy server can help work wonders for keeping you hidden also.

Advantage to using a proxy server

An anonymous open proxy allows users to conceal their IP address and thereby help preserve their anonymity and maintain their security while browsing the Web or using other Internet services.

Disadvantages to using a proxy server

It is possible for a computer to run as an open proxy server without the computer's owner knowing it. This can result from misconfiguration of proxy software running on the computer, or from infection with malware (viruses, trojans or worms) designed for this purpose. If it is caused by malware, the infected computer is known as a zombie computer.

Running an open proxy is a high risk for the server operator; providing an anonymous proxy server can cause real legal troubles to the owner. Such services are frequently used to break into foreign computer systems, child pornography is usually consumed through proxies, and illegal content is likely to be spread through such proxies. Also, such a proxy can cause a high bandwidth usage resulting in higher latency to the subnetwork and violation of bandwidth limits. A badly configured open proxy can also allow access to a private subnetwork or DMZ: this is a high security concern for any company or home network because computers that usually are out of risk or firewalled can be directly attacked.

Many open proxies run very slowly, sometimes below 14.4 kbit/s, or even below 300 bit/s, while other times the speed may change from fast to slow every minute. Some, such as PlanetLab proxies, run faster and were intentionally set up for public use.

Because open proxies are often implicated in abuse, a number of methods have been developed to detect them and to refuse service to them. IRC networks with strict usage policies automatically test client systems for known types of open proxies.

Likewise, a mail server may be configured to automatically test mail senders for open proxies, using software such as proxycheck. Increasingly, mail servers are configured out of the box to consult various DNSBL servers in order to block spam; some of those DNSBLs also list open proxies.

**ShortnWide** · 10-31-2012, 07:55 AM

Good post BL, very informative.

**grim** · 01-19-2013, 07:16 PM

doesn't https everywhere only work if the site is https enabled?

You still need to actually mask your ip and surfing habits from your isp via tor, or such as I use a VPN...

**grim** · 01-19-2013, 07:20 PM

sorry but the op is very misleading esp on https everywhere.

https everywhere does NOT encrypt all your data transport.

It only works on sites that actually offer https by rewriting http calls to https..

https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere/faq

Basically a sloppy form of strict SSL...