I'm writing to suggest a tech solution. I'm an attorney and privacy analyst at an online privacy startup in Boston called Abine<http://abine.com/>, and we developed a tracker-blocking browser add-on called DoNotTrackPlus<http://abine.com/dntdetail.php>(DNT+) with unique capabilities around social button tracker blocking. My response contains elements of shameless pluggery, but it's so relevant to the OP's call for a solution that I had to weigh in.
DNT+ stops tracking in 3 ways: 1), by blocking Javascript requests; 2), by broadcasting the Do Not Track HTTP header <http://donottrack.us/> (it isn't mandatory that sites actually adhere to the request, although more of them have come out in support of it, like Twitter did last week); and 3), setting opt-out cookies for NAI-member ad networks<http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp>. It blocks social button tracking by default by cutting off the Javascript requests that build the buttons themselves, so it's a more aggressive--and also successful--method than simply broadcasting the passive Do Not Track HTTP header and hoping that whatever site you're visiting adheres to it. What really sets DNT+ apart, though, is that it safely rebuilds social buttons with identical placeholders. This means that you'll still see social buttons on web pages like normal, but they won't be tracking you. You can still use them, but your choice to do so necessarily re-enables tracking. It's *your *choice, however, not Twitter's or Facebook's or whatever other social network's. Of course, whatever info you choose to share with social networks is exempt from DNT+'s tracking protection. We're completely dedicated to privacy, so don't collect or track anything when you get DNT+ (unlike some other companies with ties to and funding from advertising companies). It has no ability to collect data about what sites you visit or any other web behavior. The tool can save your personal settings and preferences, but those are stored locally on your computer and are not visible to us. You can verify the fact that DNT+ doesn’t track you by using an app that monitors the requests made for your computer's information throughout the day. One example of an app like this is Live HTTP Headers<https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/live-http-headers/>; we have no affiliation with whoever makes it. Our software makes 1 request per day to your computer to ask our servers for updates on new tracker-blocking rules. You will be able to see that one request and what it entails; there is no further communication or transfer of information. You can also see in part A of our privacy policy<http://abine.com/privacypolicy.php>that "Abine will not track, store or transmit to any server or third party, information regarding users' behavioral data (to include web browsing activity), nor will we "deliver or help others deliver any targeted advertising to users" (part C). You can also check out our privacy blog<http://www.abine.com/blog/>(which I write) for more on our pro-privacy standpoints. We have a freemium model. Our mission is to give consumers control back over their private information online. Building tools for consumers that improve privacy is all we do. DNT+ is our free product, and it will always be free. Our focus is to make DNT+ a great product that people love, and by doing so, we hope that some people will like it enough to want to upgrade to paid products that offer additional privacy protection, such as our subscription service, DeleteMe <http://www.abine.com/deletemedetail.php>(and we've even posted a free, DIY set of instructions for that process <http://abine.com/optouts.php>). I hope that you find this useful, and please email me if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions. Happy Friday, -Sarah On Fri, May 25, 2012 at 7:32 AM, <liberationt...@lewman.us> wrote: > On Fri, May 25, 2012 at 02:33:06PM +0700, unclezz...@gmail.com wrote 4.1K > bytes in 103 lines about: > : Even if the situation doesn't escalate in the future, like buttons > : are already spying on you /today/ (not on me, because I don't have a > : facebook account, but pretty soon twitter will be on my tail). > > I believe you are being tracked, even without a facebook > account. You are just 'anonymous user the dod' in some distributed > database at facebook. Maybe they aggregate this data, maybe they > throw it away after some period of time (hours, days, weeks, years). See > > http://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/10/18/1429223/facebook-is-building-shadow-profiles-of-non-users > as an example. Twitter, google, facebook, and others all have the capacity > to do this with ease. > > And just because you clear some cookies and log out of facebook, twitter, > etc, doesn't mean they stop tracking you. Here's the facebook example, > > https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2011/10/facebook%E2%80%99s-hotel-california-cross-site-tracking-and-potential-impact-digital-privacy > . > > And here's a couple of articles on how to track you without using cookies > or IP addresses, > > http://www.jasonmorrison.net/content/2010/three-ways-sites-can-track-visitors-without-cookies/and > > http://www.jasonmorrison.net/content/2010/three-ways-sites-can-track-visitors-without-cookies-part-2/ > . > > -- > Andrew > pgp 0x6B4D6475 > _______________________________________________ > liberationtech mailing list > liberationtech@lists.stanford.edu > > Should you need to change your subscription options, please go to: > > https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech > > If you would like to receive a daily digest, click "yes" (once you click > above) next to "would you like to receive list mail batched in a daily > digest?" > > You will need the user name and password you receive from the list > moderator in monthly reminders. You may ask for a reminder here: > https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech > > Should you need immediate assistance, please contact the list moderator. > > Please don't forget to follow us on http://twitter.com/#!/Liberationtech > -- *Sarah A. Downey* Privacy Analyst | Attorney Abine, The Online Privacy Company t: @SarahADowney | p: 800.928.1987
_______________________________________________ liberationtech mailing list liberationtech@lists.stanford.edu Should you need to change your subscription options, please go to: https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech If you would like to receive a daily digest, click "yes" (once you click above) next to "would you like to receive list mail batched in a daily digest?" You will need the user name and password you receive from the list moderator in monthly reminders. You may ask for a reminder here: https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech Should you need immediate assistance, please contact the list moderator. Please don't forget to follow us on http://twitter.com/#!/Liberationtech
