Also just by observing what they’re doing it becomes pretty clear. For example: Facebook recently purchased full-page ads on major newspapers entirely dedicated to “denounce” Apple. Why? Because Apple has built a system-level feature on iPhones that allows users to very easily disable every kind of advertising tracking and profiling. Facebook absolutely relies on being able to track you and profile your interests, so they immediately cooked up some cynical reasons why Apple shouldn’t be allowed to do this.But the truth is: if Facebook is fighting against someone on privacy matters, that someone is probably doing the right thing.

“We believe that this is a simple matter of standing up for our users,” said an Apple spokesperson in response to Facebook’s first full-page newspaper ad yesterday. “Users should know when their data is being collected and shared across other apps and websites — and they should have the choice to allow that or not.”

They create a lot of useful content on there site, which they are happy for users to copy and paste for use elsewhere. They wanted to know how often this was happening, on which pages, and what text.

My next move will be to further lower my visibility to 3rd party tracking with a combination of pi-hole caching DNS blocker and wireguard VPN .

The last login you'll ever need Solid provides for the first time a single global logon system, so that when you log into any web site, instead of having to log in with the usual 'f' and 'g', etc, blue buttons, and then be tracked by Facebook, Google, or some other large social network, instead you can log in with any Solid provider you trust, and that won't track you.

You can enable an app-level opt out flag that will disable Google Analytics across the entire app.

Most web browsers are set by default to protect your privacy unless you opt for tracking yourself. For example, Internet Explorer automatically enables its “Do Not Track” option and Google Chrome blocks any 3rd-party cookies by default.

Alarmingly, Google now deploys hidden trackers on 76% of websites across the web to monitor your behavior and Facebook has hidden trackers on about 25% of websites, according to the Princeton Web Transparency & Accountability Project. It is likely that Google and/or Facebook are watching you on most sites you visit, in addition to tracking you when using their products.

It’s important to note that where the GDPR applies, intended use factors into whether or not consent is required as even statistical data can fall under “profiling” or “monitoring” depending on how the data is being used.

it’s clear they’ll vote with their clicks not to be ad-stalked around the Internet too

You can also turn off personalization for your browser by installing the Interest-Based Ads Opt Out extension.

Google is one of many ad networks that personalizes ads based on your activity online. Go to AdChoices to control ads from other ad networks.

Uncheck the box next to "Also use your activity & information from Google services to personalize ads on websites and apps that partner with Google to show ads."

You’ll still see ads (but they may be less useful to you)

It wouldn’t mean an end to being able to target ads online. Contextual targeting doesn’t require personal data — and has been used successfully by the likes of non-tracking search engine DuckDuckGo for years (and profitably so). It would just mean an end to the really creepy, stalkerish stuff. The stuff consumers hate — which also serves up horribly damaging societal effects, given that the mass profiling of internet users enables push-button discrimination and exploitation of the vulnerable at vast scale.

And if people were really cool about sharing their personal and private information with anyone, and totally fine about being tracked everywhere they go and having a record kept of all the people they know and have relationships with, why would the ad tech industry need to spy on them in the first place? They could just ask up front for all your passwords.

From an ad tech perspective, the concern is that manipulation doesn’t work when it’s obvious. And the goal of targeted advertising is to manipulate people’s decisions based on intelligence about them gleaned via clandestine surveillance of their online activity (so inferring who they are via their data). This might be a purchase decision. Equally it might be a vote.

It is required by the GDPR as you must document cookies and online tracking at anytime and you must be able to show that documentation to both your users and the EU.

Consent Model. In the case of GDPR, you must choose the Opt-in. This means that you cannot start tracking people before the consent was given.

there are third-party cookies, such as those placed by advertisers to see what you’re interested in and in turn serve you ads — even when you leave the original site you visited. (This is how ads follow you around the internet.)