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Mozilla, Google Offer Do-Not-Track Buttons

  • CNet, Monday, January 24, 2011 11:16 AM
Sure to shake the online advertising ecosystem, Mozilla has unveiled do-not-track technology, which essentially asks Web sites not to track consumer behavior for ad-targeting purposes. According to Alex Fowler, Mozilla's global privacy and public policy leader: "We are proposing a feature that allows users to set a browser preference that will broadcast their desire to opt-out of third party, advertising-based tracking by transmitting a Do Not Track HTTP header with every click or page view in Firefox," As CNet notes, the technology follows a proposal from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, and likely preempts government legislation, which will protect consumers from unwanted tracking of their online business.

Without such legislation, however, it will be up to Mozilla to get Web site operators to cooperate. But, not Mozilla alone. As The Wall Street Journal reported this weekend: "Google is expected to announced a privacy tool called 'Keep My Opt-Outs' that enables users to permanently opt out of ad -targeting from dozens of companies."

Read the whole story at CNet »

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