Consumers turn to do-not-track software to maintain privacy

A friend sent me a link to this article, and I found it most interesting. I have always used Ad Block Plus as a Firefox extension. I always just let it run and never checked its logs, if it has any, as to what it had blocked. So the idea of a blocker like Do Not Track Plus and Ghostery, that actually show you, on a real-time basis, what has been blocked, was fascinating to me.

My friend had installed Do Not Track Plus and was quite pleased with it. I decided to try Ghostery instead mostly so we would have 2 opinions on this type of FREE software and perhaps compare notes.

I had Ghostery downloaded and installed in a matter of minutes. In my first hour I was amazed at how many different companies were tracking my every move, Ad Block Plus notwithstanding. The photo below gives you an idea of how it works. When you go to a web site Ghosteryy will display, in a small purple box, for a few seconds, all of the companies that are trying to track your moves and, I hope, blocks them all successfully. It is quite amazing to see so many. A few minutes after I went to the web site pictured below and captured the screen, I went to the AARP web site and saw 12 companies listed as wanting to track me! Wow! Who knew?

 

These Firefox extensions are very easy to install, and, in spite of some warnings, I still have both Ad Block Plus and Ghostery installed. I have not experienced any problems.

Here is the whole article if you wish to read it