By: Justin Mauss Privacy vs. Convenience

Agenda Finding the Balance: Privacy vs. Convenience Revisit Privacy vs. Convenience Overview of Online Tracking Methods Tracking: An Average Day of Surfing the Web Examine Social Networking Sites Examples of Tracking and Uses of Consumer Data Tools to View and Block Online Tracking

Let’s say you’re browsing online, shopping on different sites.

Advertising companies are always there behind the scenes,

collecting lots of information about you. as if they have a tracking device on you at all times.

They can see what you’re looking at and where you are.

They follow you across the web, always adding more information to their profile of you.

Based on all they know about you, they can change the ads you see,

and provide different prices than other users based on your spending habits.

You know who else can see all this stuff? Insurance companies, hiring managers, creditors… Really, anyone who’s curious.

If you want to stop sharing with people and businesses you don’t know, but keep using the internet you know & love, you have to do something about it.

Privacy vs. Convenience Finding the Balance

Sharing Information is Voluntary –Twitter = Your Opinions of Current Topics –Foursquare = Your Location –LinkedIn = Past and Current Professional Life –Facebook = Possibly Everything and More #1 Social Networking Site: Facebook –Facebook Statistics VideoFacebook Statistics Video Social Networking Sites

Currently Criticized: Information Availability –Strangers –Co-workers/Managers –Professors –Law Enforcement Past Studies: Surveys about Privacy Facebook

Claimed vs. Observed Information Disclosure on Social Networking Sites 131 Participants –Questionnaires about Information Disclosure on Facebook –Observed Disclosure (Not Facebook Friends of Participants) Facebook Study Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (ICT)

Categories of Data –Personal identifiable information Gender, Hometown, Birthday, Photos –Sensitive personal information Employer, School, Relationship Status –Potentially stigmatizing information Religious Status, Political Views, Favorite Media Facebook Study Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (ICT)

Personal Identifiable Information Claimed DisclosureObserved Disclosure Difference between behaviors Hometown92%61%31% Gender99%91%8% Birthday90%19%71% Birth year68%11%57% Address74%5%69% Address25%2%24% Profile Photo100%97%3% Personal Website13%2%11% Facebook Study Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (ICT)

Sensitive Personal Information Claimed DisclosureObserved Disclosure Difference between behaviors Employer18%13%5% Secondary School77%68%9% University94%77%17% Current Location71%57%14% Mobile Number60%7%53% Friends List71%87%-16% Relationship Status59%21%38% Facebook Study Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (ICT)

Potential Stigmatizing Information Claimed Disclosure Observed Disclosure Difference between behaviors Religious Status61%23%38% Political Views42%10%32% Activities58%41%17% Interests68%37%31% Gender interest55%39%16% Language72%25%47% Personal Description29%27%2% Facebook Study Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (ICT)

Conclusion: Counterintuitive Results –Drastically Different than other Studies More Publicly Protected than Thought –From a Stranger Searching Information Future Studies include Friend’s View Facebook Study Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (ICT)

Where is the issue? –Privacy too focused on User via User Real Attention: Facebook –Centralized Information –Ultimate Control Social Media Networks

Why am I being tracked? –Target Advertising –Sell information to others Why does it matter? –Unknown Data Retention –If something is free, you are the product Online Tracking Introduction

Cookies Browser History Beacons IP Address How am I Tracked? Four Main Methods

Cookies (“tag”) –HTTP Cookies From Visited Site; Stays on Computer Permanently –Session Cookies Functional Purpose; Expires When Session Ends –3 rd Party Cookies Mainly Advertising; Tracking Across Many Sites –Flash Cookies “Local Shared Objects”; Functional & Tracking How am I Tracked? Four Main Methods

Browser History –Companies View your History JavaScript (CSS) –Used for Placing in a Demographic –Now Mostly Automatically Blocked How am I Tracked? Four Main Methods

Beacons –Embedded in Website –Tracks Views, Time, IP Address, Browser –Helps Build your Information Profile How am I Tracked? Four Main Methods

IP Address Determine Geographic Location –Down to the Zip Code Track All Connections From Same IP –Easily Identified for Future Visits How am I Tracked? Four Main Methods

Tracking Service That Can’t Be Evaded –Turning Off Flash Storage –Blocking Cookies –Surfing in “Privacy” Mode Used to Track: –Number of Visitors –What Visitors Do on the Site –Other Sites They are Visiting KISSmetrics Tracking Example Researchers at U.C. Berkeley (2011)

On the Web’s Most Popular Sites –Hulu, Spotify, AOL, Groupon, Microsoft, Foursquare, Adobe, and many more How it is Accomplished: KISSmetrics Tracking Example Researchers at U.C. Berkeley (2011)

KISSmetrics Defended Themselves –Minor lawsuits, but laws & regulations are playing catch up Main Issue: Tough to Block Tracking –Browsers - Advance Privacy Settings –Extra Extensions Need to be Installed KISSmetrics Tracking Example Researchers at U.C. Berkeley (2011)

Google+: 21.5% Twitter: 41.7% Facebook: 49.3% Twitter: 10.0% Google+: 13.3% Facebook: 24.3% % Integrated with Official Social Plugins on Homepage % Integrated with any Social Networking Site Links on Homepage Top 10,000 Websites Google #1; Facebook #2; Twitter #10 as of 2/16/2013 Common Method to Aggregate Data

Different Approach Than Other Companies eBay’s AdChoice AdChoice Opted Out AdChoice Service Running 1

Collusion –Experimental Add-On –Track 3 rd Party Companies –Connections between Trackers and Businesses in Real Time Average Day of Surfing Tool to View Trackers: Collusion

Visit Sites As Usual (10 Sites) Average Day of Surfing Tool to View Trackers: Collusion Uwplatt.edueBay DiscoverPayPay WiredGoogle Wall Street JournalApple TwitterFacebook

Four Different Cases (All Homepage Visits) –Before Anti-Tracking Tools; Not Signed In –Before Anti-Tracking Tools; Signed In –After Anti-Tracking Tools; Not Signed In –After Anti-Tracking Tools; Signed In Average Day of Surfing Tool to View Trackers: Collusion

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tool; Not Signed In

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tool; Not Signed In

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tool; Not Signed In

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tool; Not Signed In

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tools; Signed In

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tools; Signed In

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tools; Signed In

Collusion Before Anti-Tracking Tools; Signed In

Detects Cookies, Web Bugs, Beacons Trackers over 1,200 Trackers Tools to View and Stop Tracking Ghostery

Tools to View and Stop Tracking Ghostery

Open Source Blocks Pop-ups, Video Ads, and Banners Tools to View and Stop Tracking Adblock Plus

Researchers from International Computer Science Institute in Berkeley Focused on Understanding Social Networking Sites –Facebook –Twitter –Google + –LinkedIn Tools to View and Stop Tracking Priv3

Collusion After Anti-Tracking Tools; Not Signed In

Collusion After Anti-Tracking Tools; Signed In

Collusion Signed In: Before vs. After Anti-Tracking

Realistic Issue: Everyone is Tracking Internet Users Worldwide: –2,405,517,376 as of June 30, 2012 Internet Users Worldwide Actively Using the Top 3 Anti-Tracking Tools: –28,100,000 as of December, 2012 About 1.2% Block Major Trackers Users Need to be Aware

Privacy vs. Convenience Decide Your Own Balance

Privacy vs. Convenience Review Finding the Balance: Privacy vs. Convenience Revisit Privacy vs. Convenience Overview of Online Tracking Tracking: An Average Day of Surfing the Web Examine Social Networking Sites Examples of Tracking and Use of Consumer Data Tools to View and Block Online Tracking

Thank you for your time! Any Questions?