Technology companies systematically monitor our online activity. Information security experts have been mentioning it for years, but many people still seem to be ignoring it; recently, reports have increased that this surveillance occurs even when users enable private browsing mode to visit adult content sites.
The tracking software used by companies such as Facebook and Google is able to record even the most personal online activities, says the research published by the New Media & Society magazine. For the realization of this document were analyzed more than 20k pornographic material websites; most worryingly, it’s not clear where all the data collected is going.
Elena Maris, an information security specialist in charge of research, says the developers of these sites should have better measures to protect the privacy of their users. “Maybe porn sites developers haven’t thought about it, but the information they control is as sensitive and confidential as a person’s clinical history,” she says.
The research revealed that about 93% of the porn sites analyzed are collecting user data and send it to multiple third-party sites. In general, developers of these adult sites rely on the use of webXray, open source software to detect and match third-party data requests to scan websites.
Information security specialists added that less than 20% of these sites have encryption to safeguard the information they manage; a possible explanation for this trend is that operators of these sites do business with sensitive user data, ceding them to hacker groups or dark web forums.
In addition, websites do not provide clear information about companies that have access to the information collected, as only 17% of these platforms have a privacy policy section available to users.
According to specialists from the International Institute of Cyber Security (IICS), almost all online follow-up activities are performed by default and are governed by unclear policies or out of reach of users.
The leakage of visitor data from pornographic sites is a sensitive topic and all suppliers of this material, as well as technology companies, must adapt their activity logging practices to privacy standards to improve the experience of the User.
He is a well-known expert in mobile security and malware analysis. He studied Computer Science at NYU and started working as a cyber security analyst in 2003. He is actively working as an anti-malware expert. He also worked for security companies like Kaspersky Lab. His everyday job includes researching about new malware and cyber security incidents. Also he has deep level of knowledge in mobile security and mobile vulnerabilities.
