Thursday, March 28, 2024

Researchers Expose Cunning Online Tracking Service That Can’t Be Dodged

Datamation content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

Wired: UC Berkeley researchers have published a new report which exposes KISSmetrics, a service that tracks Web users even if they have taken the usual steps to protect their privacy. “The stuff works even if you have all cookies blocked and private-browsing mode enabled,” said report author Ashkan Soltani. “The code itself is pretty damning.”

The service is used by many popular sites, including Hulu (although Hulu says it cut ties with KISSmetrics after the report first appeared.)

KISSmetrics spokesperson Hitten Shah acknowledged that the substance of the report was correct, but defended the company’s service. “We don’t do it for malicious reasons. We don’t do it for tracking people across the web,” Shah said. “I would be having lawyers talk to you if we were doing anything malicious.”

Subscribe to Data Insider

Learn the latest news and best practices about data science, big data analytics, artificial intelligence, data security, and more.

Similar articles

Get the Free Newsletter!

Subscribe to Data Insider for top news, trends & analysis

Latest Articles