IT Security Stack Exchange
IT Security Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [user-tracking]

205 questions
107
votes
3 answers

How does DuckDuckGo know my native language even though I am using a VPN in a country with a different language?

I recently started using a VPN and I've felt more comfortable browsing the Internet. My VPN allows me to select another country through which my traffic is routed to make it appear I'm located in that particular country. "What's my IP" and similar…
S. Rotos
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91
votes
5 answers

How does Facebook track your browsing without third party cookies?

Facebook has served me an ad for a website I visited earlier in the day. I have third party cookies disabled and have not followed any links between the website and Facebook (links which could contain a tracking ID connecting my Facebook account to…
Jesse
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86
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3 answers

What information about me do stores get via my credit card?

Lets say I buy something at some (physical) store and pay using a credit card on one of these electronic terminals. What information do the owners of this store get about me (or my credit card) from this transaction? Can they find out whether…
flawr
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73
votes
4 answers

How can you be tracked using screen resolution/monitor size in Tor?

Whenever I maximize the Tor browser, it shows a warning: Maximizing Tor Browser can allow websites to determine you monitor size, which can be used to track you... How can screen resolution or monitor size be used to track a person?
Anurag
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34
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8 answers

Why Say IP Addresses Are Harmless?

Whenever I see someone on the internet ask the question, "Can someone find out my IP Address from my tweets/my tumblr/facebook posts/whatever else", the response I always see is, "Who cares! An IP Address doesn't even tell anyone anything! It's just…
Anon
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33
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1 answer

How do social media apps notify you when someone else takes a screenshot of your profile?

Social media apps like snapchat, instagram, viber, etc notify you if someone takes a screenshot of your profile, chat, conversation, story, etc. How does the app find out that you are taking a screenshot of their conversation, profile,…
Zheer
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31
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2 answers

How is Skype showing ads from my Google search history?

I can understand when I see the same ads across websites, and ads similar to my search history. Some tracking magic through cookies - fine. But Skype has been showing me ads for exact terms I searched for in Google (Chrome), and nothing else. For…
makhdumi
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29
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7 answers

Trying to create safe website where security is handled by the website and not the user

I work with civil rights for children and youth and am trying to create a website for LGBT youth and children and their families. The website needs to be safe as it is still very dangerous in many countries to admit to being gay (or LGBTQ). I have a…
FDoherty
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24
votes
3 answers

Listening to phone calls as user profiling for marketing

I had a landline phone call about xyz with an xyz-expert (also on landline) for about an hour, for the first time. After couple of days I started getting suggested links on websites as an ad exactly about xyz's services. Question: In theory, either…
zx8754
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22
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2 answers

Does this CSS code expose if a message is read, and how long they have been reading it?

This email analytics company offers an 'engagement metric' that shows how much time someone spends looking at an email, whether the email is printed or deleted. They also claim it works in pretty much all email clients, be it web, desktop or…
Cleber Goncalves
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21
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1 answer

How can I detect real location of the user through their IP address?

There were many ways to detect the user's IP, for instance we could get it through a single click link or through any other medium of communication where we could get the user's IP. But the tedious part is finding the real geo-location of the IP…
BlueBerry - Vignesh4303
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20
votes
6 answers

Is there a security advantage or risk in removing disabled user accounts?

So I'm having a debate with someone about whether or not to remove disabled accounts. My stance is that it is good network hygiene, reduces the amount of noise to sift through, etc. However, the argument is, what is the risk being addressed. I…
POSH Geek
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19
votes
4 answers

How does someone with HubSpot Sidekick knows when I opened their sent email?

This app claims to know when recipients opened the emails that were sent to them. Tracking clicked URLs is fairly straightforward. What I don't understand is how a 3rd party can possibly know when I open their email? Does web-based email clients…
Sparkler
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17
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2 answers

Is it possible to identify who's behind a nmap -D scan?

Nmap's -D option stands for decoy, which means that the attacker can simulate that the attack is coming from multiple IPs, including attacker's IP. From the point of view of the victim, is it possible to identify the real IP and then trace back the…
The Illusive Man
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14
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3 answers

Someone keeps using my email address. What to do?

I have had a GMail ever since it was created, so it's an email address that is easy to remember, but also easy for somebody else to get confused with. Since I'm not going to post my email address here, I'll put the format for it which is [first…
SameOldNick
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