Hacking the Future by Cole Stryker

Author:Cole Stryker [Stryker, Cole]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
Tags: COM060080, COM060000
ISBN: 9781468305456
Publisher: Overlook
Published: 2012-09-13T04:00:00+00:00

Do Not Track

Since Jonathan Mayer was an undergrad, he’s split his time between public policy and computer security. One of his projects is the maintenance of DoNotTrack.Us, a Web site that informs people about a browser application built into Firefox that indicates to advertisers that its users don’t want to be tracked. It’s not just software, it’s a push for legislation called the Do Not Track standard.

“I don’t care much for the ivory tower—I try to work on projects that actually benefit users. Do Not Track was a concrete way to put users back in control over their online privacy,” he says.

The hope is that Do Not Track will be passed in the form of legislation, and advertising companies will have to respect any Web user’s decision to block tracking. Congress and the Federal Trade Commission have been considering such legislation since they first proposed a Do Not Track system in December 2010.

Do Not Track signals to Web sites that the user would like to opt out of third-party Web tracking. Mayer tells me that it’s roughly equivalent to planting a No Trespassing sign on your browser’s lawn. Do Not Track is intended to be a tool for any Web user. Right now approximately 6 percent of Firefox desktop users and 17 percent of Firefox mobile users use the service. Although it comes with Firefox right out of the box, it’s not turned on by default. All you need to do is go into Firefox’s privacy settings and check a box that says, “Tell Web sites I do not want to be tracked.” Done. The option is also available to users of Safari and Internet Explorer.

Whether a tracking company chooses to comply with Do Not Track is up to them. All the software does is send a signal, a “herald” sent ahead that tells sites “Please don’t track my master.” But the proponents of Do Not Track hope that federal pressures may one day supplement the existing social pressures that have convinced a handful of tracking companies to play ball.

Obviously many Web companies who rely on advertising revenue are not happy with Do Not Track. They claim that advertising fueled by analytics gathered from site traffic is a primary source of revenue for many Web sites, and Do Not Track legislation would hamstring the Web economy as a result. Mayer suggests that Do Not Track’s effect on advertising is marginal, actively restricting only around 4 percent of total online advertising. A second concern is that if Do Not Track were to become legislation, it would only drive tracking underground, since compliance would be difficult to monitor.

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