In these days where privacy vs security is discussed on Internet sites when visiting them, where it does not matter if the country is from a communist regime like China or capitalist like the United States, there has been a noticeable increase in tracking (tracking, tracking on the Internet) on most of the web pages that are visited. They collect information about where you are, who you are and what you are doing on your websites.
In general, tracking involves gathering information about its use or interaction with a particular web page. Web crawlers can collect more information than just browsing a website. The websites also use them to collect data such as: their IP address, where they came from, their geographical location and the characteristics of their browser.
There are three main methods that websites use to track: cookies, fingerprints and beacons.
Tracking cookies are small files stored in your browser that help the websites you visit often identify it. The websites use cookies to store your customized settings and preferences or login information. Cookies can add convenience to the sites you visit frequently, but unfortunately websites also use them to store data.
Someone once said: "You may think that cookies are a bit like an event bracelet. If you attend a concert and put on the bracelet, the door staff will recognize you if you leave and come back. "
Tracking beacons are small, transparent "images", often 1 pixel by 1 pixel, that are uploaded to web pages (or within emails) for tracking and reporting purposes. Websites use beacons to obtain information about the number of times that visitors load certain pages. Advertisers also use them to determine how many impressions their ads receive.
Most web beacons do not have malicious intentions. However, some are used in a negative way. For example, spammers can send emails containing beacons to thousands of email addresses, and then when mail is opened and loaded, it also loads the beacon. This allows the spammer to know that the email address is active and that the user is likely to open more unwanted emails.
Another form of tracking, perhaps not so common, is fingerprinting. It is a more complex tracking method. Instead of storing a file in your browser or on your computer to identify it, it is done by verifying your browser settings.
The methods of fingerprinting are increasingly complex. Other factors that are used to identify it could be the version of your browser, the size and resolution of the monitor or the operating system.
The tracking as we have seen is a generalized problem. And in the cryptocurrency ecosystem, it is a problem that is present at every moment, with hundreds of scams trying to obtain data that unfortunately allow hacking wallets hosted on the PCs and / or smartphones of many careless users.
According to a Ghostery study, 79% of websites around the world are tracking their data. Some of the websites with the largest tracking networks are social networking sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp and large non-private search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Microsoft.
We see a big problem with the way websites crawl their users. There are ways in which sites could anonymize their tracking data, but not all do so because it does not suit them.
If each website you visit is following, create a culture that accepts follow-up. By growing indifferent to share our information with third parties, we run the risk of losing control of our private data completely.
Too much tracking displaces the power of consumers and to advertisers who want to influence the customer's buying behavior. After all, it's all about power and money.
Unfortunately, data collection has become a norm for too many websites. There is a general idea that companies should collect as much data as possible, in case they find a use in the future.
Large advertising networks such as Facebook and Google Ads rely on user data to charge more for targeted ads very directly. Many companies rely on these ads to make their websites or online businesses profitable.
Currently, there are some basic tips to avoid being tracked on the Internet. One of the most common is to use tracking or tracking blockers. Crawlers run as scripts that run when you load a web page. These scripts are invisible to you, but they collect information about you, including your IP address and scanning behavior.
You can easily download these tracking blockers as browser add-ons (Chrome extensions or Firefox add-ons). They will prevent crawlers from collecting information from your browser.
Another way in which these browser extensions protect you is to prevent crawlers from using cookies or fingerprints to track your browsing.
These tracking blockers can also prevent ads from loading on the websites you visit. Ads that are uploaded to websites often contain tracking or tracking scripts that advertisers use to determine the effectiveness of their ads.
Another effective way is to use VPN (virtual private networks). They maintain their private browsing by redirecting their network connection through another virtual network in a different location. Using a VPN prevents websites from collecting your real IP address or your actual geographic location. Among the most effective VPN providers I recommend: NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Private Internet Access, PureVPN and Perfect Privacy.
Finally you can use the option of "Do Not Track" to block the tracking from your web browser, which theoretically sends a request to the sites you visit to not track your information. Although enabling this configuration you can protect it in some websites that you visit , it is not always effective.
Finally you can use private browsers such as DuckDoGo or Search Encrypt. Most search engines collect data from users to "customize" their products or to target the ads. Search Encrypt is a private search engine, so privacy is always a primary focus.
Remember, privacy is something that gives you security. If we omit this important point today in a technologically connected world, our private data such as private keys, passwords, bank details in general; they can commit and make themselves known.