Mozilla Considering Opt-In Browsing Tracking

[The Dude]

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/94361

Mozilla's project, which technically doesn't even have a name yet, would ask the software's 170-million strong user base if they wanted to opt-in to user tracking. Opt-in being the key (and all too uncommon) phrase. Of course there's the problem that Firefox user interests may not represent the general public accurately. [more]

They must be teaming up with Microsoft to keep track of what people are doing.......

Unreal......

IE already tracks peoples habit by storing URL's to Index.dat file, but not sure about Mozilla.

[John A]

>IE already tracks peoples habit by storing URL's to Index.dat file
That's not tracking. index.dat is nothing more than a database residing on your hard drive which holds various bits of data, including web history, for Internet Explorer. At no time is that file ever sent back to Microsoft, although some groups still contend that it's an invasion of privacy in the way that it's hard to erase.

What the article is talking about is something completely different. If opted in, users' history data would actually be sent back to Mozilla.

[GrimJack]

Google automatically tracks your movement - I had to set google-analytics and doubleclick to my NoScript blacklist and I run TMN (TrackMeNot) and do not use Google desktop.

[coolraj003]

But when you remove the internet history on IE does that erase it from the Index.dat or does it still remains in there without the user's klnowledge. And how important is that file for the system???

Raj

@ John A
My bad, I completely misunderstood the article, but there are vulnerabilities exists with Index.dat file and it helps hacker to identify trails.
@ Raj
Use Ccleaner.

[coolraj003]

Point noted.

Thanks man.

So does it mean that the deleting browsing history do not clear up the index.dat file then eh???

Raj

Yes, specially use Ccleaner's last release of series of 1 (v1.41.544). The newer version 2 doesn't seems pretty good enough to me.