Today’s advertisers can target customers better than ever, with our digital footprint helping them determine our shopping and other habits. This way, they get to segment and target people that are most likely to buy their products and services.
And all this is made possible with cookies. Which is what this article is all about. Read on for details…
Cookies explained
A cookie is a small text file created in your browser and stored on your device. When you visit a website, your web browser sends it an HTTP request, while the website responds with both the content (web page) you asked for and any cookies it would like your browser to save. These cookies are then saved along with the site information they came from.
It is important to note that cookies aren’t evil — their main use is to keep you logged in, but they could also be used to track your behavior.
For logging purposes, cookies typically contain the session ID which is also stored in the website database. By pairing the two — cookie from your browser and the session ID in the database — the website owner knows you are an existing user and will keep you logged in. This also allows websites to recognize you when you get back to the website after a few days or weeks.
Without cookies, you would have to log into some sites every time you close the browser window — which would make for a terrible experience.
How are cookies used to track you?
On the other hand, cookies can and are already being used to push user tracking to a whole new level. You see, websites can track you even without cookies, using your IP address and all other information that your browser sends to the website server — including which browser and device you’re using, language, operating system, and so on.
However, without cookies or some user logging, website operators can’t know which user is which. And that’s where cookies come in, letting websites know individual users and track their behavior on their website.
From here we’re talking about third-party trackers, such as those used by Google Analytics, AdRoll and other software that is used by website operators to better understand their users’ behavior.
Some of these are single-site trackers while others like AdRoll can share users’ activity across all of their clients (and beyond). As such, they let website operators learn more about their users as the same tracker is placed on other sites, as well.
Facebook does something similar with its Pixel tracking, enabling advertisers to reach “similar audiences” which would be those with similar interests on Facebook or those that visit similar websites.
This, we believe, is problematic as many users are unaware of these practices that effectively allow Facebook and other providers of such third-party cookie services to create our digital profiles. These digital profiles, in case you wonder, include our interest and even some personal information that has a true value in the eyes of advertisers. After all, Ferrari is not something I could afford, thus I don’t get to see their ads — with Ferrari’s agency knowing exactly whom to target for these super-expensive cars.
The problem with this practice is that all of us are effectively turned into products that the likes of Facebook can sell to interested brands.
How can you fight back?
There are a few things you could do:
- Be careful what you share on Facebook and other social media so they can’t easily build your digital profile.
- Use a privacy-focused web browser like Opera and Epic — or an addon for Chrome. Heck, even Firefox and Safari are better than Google’s browser.
- Get a VPN that will let you access the Internet from a different IP address every single. Just connect to a different server and you’re good to go. We suggest checking our page with Best of the Best VPN and taking it from there.
And if you want to know more, check out more tips on how to be more anonymous online. Good luck! 😉