Tag Archives: darity wesley

Privacy 101- History Sniffing

Posted on by
2

Written By: Darity Wesley

“Sometimes history takes things into its own hands.”– Thurgood Marshall

Technology has spawned some interesting terms like phishing and spamming. The latest conversation in the privacy world is about ‘history sniffing’.

What is history sniffing and why do we care? When you click on a link on a website, the color changes from blue to purple (by default). Browser history sniffing compares the colors of links in your history folder to a master list of links (and their default non-visited colors) maintained by a website operator, who accesses your computer without permission. A color mismatch indicates a particular site has been visited.

Why is this important? Website owners can see which site you have been visiting and glean valuable marketing information as to where to advertise their services as well as know about personal interests you would rather keep private. Advertising companies can exploit the data to build user profiles, and fraudsters could monitor which financial websites you visit to figure out which fake banking site they should use to launch a phishing attack that is likely to succeed.

I know this is somewhat disconcerting but there is help on the way. Clearing your browser history is one thing you can do to help prevent browser history sniffing. Another is to update your browser and Flash plug-ins regularly. Google’s Chrome browser doesn’t save history as such. Firefox has an upgrade on the way and Microsoft recently announced that Internet Explorer would add protection.

There is legal action afoot to help eliminate this practice. A suit was recently filed in the U.S. District Court in California that accuses the website YouPorn of violating a number of laws and the plaintiffs are requesting, among other things, an injunction to stop history sniffing practices. Another suit was recently filed in New York against McDonald’s, CBS, Mazda and Microsoft as well as behavioral advertiser Interclick for alleged violation of privacy.

If you want to find out what information is available about you in cyberspace, check out the website ‘What the Internet knows about you‘. As always, stay aware and alert as to what you choose to make public and what you want to keep private. Remember, you can control what information you give out. Though sometimes it is a little less convenient to maintain your privacy, there are many times I feel it is worth it.

Darity Wesley is CEO and Legal Counsel for Privacy Solutions, Inc. a San Diego based consulting firm. You can always reach Darity at Darity@PrivacyGurus.com or (619) 670-9462.

Privacy 101- Zombie Cookies and Other Scary Things

Posted on by
Reply
Darity Wesley

Darity Wesley

“I have never known a greater miracle, or monster, than myself”– Michel Montaigne

October is the month we usually open our homes to scary things like ghosts, goblins and other monsters. What you may not know is that a part of your home and office could always be open to some really scary zombies that live in your computer. These are what have come be known as zombie cookies. Sounds tasty at first but just wait until you hear the full story. A zombie cookie is a bit like a poisoned apple from a privacy perspective.

A cookie on your computer is a small bit of text stored on your browser by a website. It is the technology that is used to add things to your online shopping cart while remembering what is already in there; stores website preferences like your webmail homepage layout, and remembers your log-in information. This is the overt benefit of accepting cookies. The darker side of cookies is that they can be used to track your web browsing habits without you ever knowing about it.

Getting rid of unwanted cookies used to be fairly easy by working with your Internet setting options. Most of us routinely delete cookies and then rest assured they are gone. We now have come to know that the undead are among us as “Zombie Cookies: Night of the Living Dead.” No matter how many times you delete them, these cookies re-spawn, most often in Adobe Flash players (which are installed in about 98% of personal computers), and deliver behavioral information from our computers back to, up until recently, companies like ESPN, MTV, HULU, ABC, MySpace, NBC, YouTube and many others. Click through to this article to find out more about these dreadfully unappetizing cookies and how to get rid of them.

What the data collected from browsing does is develop an anonymous profile of a person that doesn’t include a name but can offer up the valuable demographic information that is the lifeblood of successful target marketing like age, tastes and hobbies, and general location. The upside of this kind of information is that you end up with advertisements that are relevant to you, which offers you access to new places and things that you may have not otherwise known. According to the recent Wall Street Journal article, children are extensively tracked more than adults, which isn’t too surprising as it follows along with how advertisers have worked with the other media over the decades like radio, movies and television. It is just much more sophisticated and definitive in reaching an appreciative audience. The article linked above has some great tips in it to help you protect yourself and your children, so please take a look at it.

People are paying attention to this issue. There have been several lawsuits filed by privacy attorney Joseph Malley this summer, and the Federal Trade Commission has had behavioral advertising on their radar for a couple of years and will advocate to enforce consumers’ decisions to avoid online targeting. The online advertising community wants to self-regulate so it looks like there will be much discussion on this topic in the near future.

There is so much to be aware and alert about in the privacy world these days. We have many choices to make in regards to what is our public life and what we want to keep private. Make sure you make your choices with intention, not by default, so you don’t have to go running off to your mummy screaming.

Darity Wesley is CEO and Legal Counsel for Privacy Solutions, Inc. a San Diego based consulting firm. You can always reach Darity at Darity@PrivacyGurus.com or (619) 670-9462.

Privacy 101- It’s All About Control

Posted on by
Reply
Darity Wesley

Darity Wesley

“Control your destiny or someone else will!” – Jack Welch

It’s a big time right now in the world of privacy both from a personal and professional perspective. There is legislation pending in the U.S. House of Representatives that will craft the law for Internet best practices. As a cyber law expert, I have read both bills that are currently on the floor and have been watching with great interest the discussion they are generating. Business and consumer groups alike are all showing up and demonstrating the power of democracy at its best by expressing their opinions. This is volatile legislation because it could easilly change the way personally identifiable information is handled and what businesses need to do with the information they have collected.

This isn’t called the Information Age for nothing! The free flow of data is the lifeblood of most businesses. And that lifeblood is thicker than water and almost as costly. Not only are there big bucks in general business information like listing data, there is a monetary value placed on each bit of preference information collected about you. This Wall Street Journal article reveals that one of the fastest growing businesses on the Internet is gathering consumer information. Is this a bad thing?

It depends.

These great technology advances are helping to make the consumers’ online experience as personal as having a valet and assistant combined even to the point of being able to predict what an individual is likely to want based on history. That’s pretty convenient! I was talking to a friend who was looking up medical symptoms on the web and targeted ads appeared on the right side offering up remedies commonly known to help ease symptoms of that ailment. To some people, that is a great service. Some even say that this is the era of great breakthroughs in human behavior research.

On the other hand, if you are interested in maintaining a modicum of a private life, some of these great technologies are a bit disconcerting. Though the benefits of social networking are being proven, many people are still uncomfortable not being able to control information that is and is not gathered about them.

This sounds like a dilemma to consumers but to a number of forward thinking technology firms it is an opportunity. I came across this company, which helps consumers monitor what advertising networks have in your profile and gives you the control over your own interest data. Bynamite claims to have the world’s most honest privacy policy. It is well worth a read since it clearly explains what I believe, which is that the next generation of privacy is about controlling how your information is used.

What information you reveal, to whom and for what reasons, are your choice. Ask a business why they need your information beyond what you feel is necessary for your transaction. Be willing to say no. Research your privacy and opt-out options on websites and uncheck or check boxes to maintain whatever level of privacy you wish.

Or, as we say in each of our newsletters, it is up to you to stay aware and alert!

Darity Wesley is CEO and Legal Counsel for Privacy Solutions, Inc. a San Diego based consulting firm. You can always reach Darity at Darity@PrivacyGurus.com or (619) 670-9462.