This alarming article appeared last week:
Wednesday, 23 November 2022 23:14
NordVPN research finds websites have 48 trackers on average, social media sites have 160
NordVPN research finds websites follow their visitors with 48 trackers per site on average, with social media websites at 160 trackers on average.
In fact, the number of trackers by social media websites is so high - for collecting and monetising user data - that it completely skews the data; the next highest category, health websites, comes in at 46 trackers on average. In third place are digital media sites with an average of 28 trackers per site.
Coming in last place is Government websites with an average of a single tracker per site, and in second-last place are porn websites with an average of four trackers.
The bulk of trackers are third parties - that is, they are not from the user (obviously), but are not created or owned by the website operator itself. Instead, 30% of these third-party trackers belong to Google, 11% to Facebook and maybe surprisingly, 7% to Adobe. This data is collected and used in marketing.
“The number of website trackers depends mostly on data-protection laws in a country. That is why in Central and Northern Europe, where GDPR rules are applied, websites have fewer trackers. However, the situation is completely different in the USA, where no singular law covers the privacy of all types of data in all states,” says NordVPN digital privacy expert Daniel Markuson.
NordVPN researchers looked into the 100 most popular websites in 25 countries worldwide, and using three different tracker blockers they could see how many trackers (such as a cookie or a tracking pixel) those websites use to know more about their users.
Researchers are one thing; trackers are difficult to detect for regular users and website visitors.
Not all tracking is nefarious; sometimes it is to help website administrators improve user experiences allowing them to optimise for the most common devices and screen sizes people use, or identifying slow pages.
Yet, trackers can also be used to profile users and the data sold to third parties like Google, Facebook, and Adobe. They use the profile to serve targeted, and even intrusive, advertisements that follow users from website to website.
NordVPN also highlights that cybercriminals can get their hands on this data and compile detailed portfolios about targets and use it to construct highly personalised and believable phising attacks.
More to see in the article with some suggestions as to what to do to reduce these intrusions.
Really those who want to market to and exploit us never quit. I find the numbers amazing! Pity there are usually not ways to opt out….maybe you do actually need a VPN (which they are selling <grin>)!
In passing others also like to scam us!
Thursday, 24 November 2022 11:30
Hack Friday: Nearly 7 million Aussies have fallen victim to online shopping scams
Nearly 7 million Aussies have fallen victim to online shopping scams, it was revealed today as almost 11 million Australian shoppers prepare to embark on the biggest bargain hunts of the year.
Research commissioned by cybersecurity company NordVPN reveals that 26% of Australians have been scammed while shopping online — equivalent to seven million people.
“With Black Friday less than a week away, cyber scammers have their sights on the four in five Australians who might take part in the event — 40.8% of Austrlia’s shoppers say they’ll head online for Cyber Monday, Black Friday or the Christmas sales, with a further 34.3% still to decide,”NordVPN notes.
“The task of online criminals is being made easier by the millions of Australian consumers prepared to offer up a treasure trove of personal information in exchange for an extra markdown or freebie — and those who have already been scammed are at the front of the queue.
“Of the three in ten people who have previously experienced a scam, many admit they’d still be prepared to hand over a catalogue of bizarrely irrelevant information to get a big discount or freebie.
“One in ten (10.8%) would hand over their credit card details, 4.6% would give their tax file number and 8.1% would reveal where they worked. A further 8.1% would even reveal their children’s names for the chance to bag an extra bargain.
“All told, 93% of scam victims are still willing to hand over at least some personal data to land a bonus gift, discount or free service.”
More here:
Pity there seems to be money to be made with all this!
David.
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