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Verizon Subscribers Can Now Opt Out of "Supercookies"

Posted by samzenpus on from the don't-track-me-bro dept.

itwbennett writes Verizon said in January that it would allow subscribers to opt out of having a unique identifier placed on their phones that critics have labelled a "supercookie" because it's almost impossible to remove, but it didn't say when. On Tuesday, Verizon said the identifier won't be inserted for customers who opt out of its mobile advertising program: "Verizon Wireless has updated its systems so that we will stop inserting the UIDH after a customer opts out of the relevant mobile advertising program or activates a line that is ineligible for the advertising program, such as as a government or business line," Verizon said in a change to its policies.

82 comments

  1. We need COMMUNISM now! by For+a+Free+Internet · · Score: -1

    The problems isn't "corporations" it's CAPITALISM idiots, you Slashdort brainwashed monkey kissers!

    --
    UNITE with the Campaign for a Free Internet because today, our future begins with tomorrow!
    1. Re:We need COMMUNISM now! by epyT-R · · Score: 2

      Nope. It's 'crony capitalism', where large corps grow the size of the state with lobbies and use it to corner the market and impose the ethics of the principals on the rest of us. It's a revolving door at the top of the pyramid, and they're all friends. A corp can only refuse to employ you or refuse to sell to you, the state can confiscate your property and imprison.. It's both tracks together that create tyranny.

    2. Re:We need COMMUNISM now! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The problems isn't "corporations" it's CAPITALISM idiots, you Slashdort brainwashed monkey kissers!

      Communism is evil! It is slavery! No Yipppeee for you!!!

    3. Re:We need COMMUNISM now! by johnsnails · · Score: 1

      But whats this got to do with Verizon?

    4. Re:We need COMMUNISM now! by _merlin · · Score: 2

      Nope. It's 'crony capitalism'

      Call me cynical, but I don't think I've ever seen any other kind of capitalism.

    5. Re:We need COMMUNISM now! by GLMDesigns · · Score: 1

      So this cannot happen in communist or fascist or theocratic states. Right?

      What makes capitalism unique and useful to the individual is that one can push back against a corporation by not buying their products. This cannot happen when the state does it. At that point it requires guns.

      Capitalism gives an option of wallets that you can take advantage of before you go to guns.

      From my perspective you're the brainwashed, monkey kissing idiot.

      --
      If you're scared of your govt then you need to further restrict its powers
      Vote 3rd Party in 2016 and beyond
  2. This one is so obviously fake. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Like faker than buying the Liberty Bell fake.

  3. April Fool's by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is a cruel April Fool's joke, Slashdot.

  4. I don't get it? by awilden · · Score: 2

    So what's the movie reference? It's obviously a joke story...

    1. Re:I don't get it? by IMarvinTPA · · Score: 1

      I think it is a book, 1984. But I don't remember this part...

      Hmm

      --
      Trusting software vendors is no smarter than trus
  5. April Fools??? by davidwr · · Score: 1

    Okay this is last month's news and not a joke, but anything that reads like "BigName Telco Admits They Were Evil" has me waiting for someone to say "April Fools".

    --
    Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
    1. Re:April Fools??? by Dutch+Gun · · Score: 1

      No, BigName Company was caught with their hand in the proverbial cookie jar, and the backlash was strong enough that they were forced to backtrack a bit. You could just substitute "Lenovo" and "Superfish" with "Verizon" and "supercookie", and the story would essentially be identical.

      Don't discount the importance these headlines, though. The very fact that it *makes* news is a good thing, as it's the only thing that typically forces these companies to back down.

      --
      Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
    2. Re:April Fools??? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Proverbial?

      This was a very literal cookie jar

    3. Re:April Fools??? by AK+Marc · · Score: 1

      It wasn't a proverbial cookie jar. It was a literal cookie, thus a literal cookie jar.

      --
      Learn to love Alaska
    4. Re:April Fools??? by whh3 · · Score: 1

      I see what you did there.

      It would have only been better had this somehow been related to a Java implementation. Then they could have had their hand in the Cookie.jar.

      --
      remove nospam. to email!
  6. testing method? by dltaylor · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I can set up a WiFi port to capture the data over that medium (really nice switches that allow port mirroring), but how can I test that 3/4G data requests not only no longer have the "supercookie", but have no new flavor of tracking tag? I'm concerned that they might have one that gets stripped except for special destinations, such as paying businesses, so I couldn't test it against my own web server.

    1. Re:testing method? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You could create an l7 filter to filter out the cookie before it even gets to your browser.. maybe netfilter with the l7 patches or squid..

    2. Re:testing method? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      yea. they're probably "allowing" an "opt out" now because they've come up with something even better (i.e. undiscoverable by end-users).. like simply handing over URI requests, search traffic, and so forth to paying customers (who are then their "partners" or some other bullshit term and such sharing of data is allowed by their policies)

    3. Re:testing method? by wbr1 · · Score: 0

      Lease or build a stingray and connect to it. It should have deep packet inspection capabilities and catch things before being stripped on Verizon's network.

      --
      Silence is a state of mime.
    4. Re:testing method? by johnmoe · · Score: 3, Informative

      You just go to any of the web pages that will show you your http headers. Opt out. Notice that x-uidh header is now gone.

    5. Re:testing method? by viperidaenz · · Score: 2

      The tracking is not done on the phone.

      They inject HTTP tracking headers as the data goes over their 3G/4G network.

      Even if you had a Stingray you couldn't check. You just have to trust Verizon.

    6. Re:testing method? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You just have to trust Verizon.

      and how does one do that? get a dumb phone? they put fucking adverts (full screen, on the clamshell and inside, requires the correct button push to clear) on three of our 'feature' phones several times a day, too... which is why the last phone on the account (mine) will NOT be upgraded or replaced.. even if it has a dead main display and is being held together with duct tape now (seriously, it is!).

    7. Re:testing method? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You could set up a web server somewhere and check the headers of incoming requests. This is in fact not that hard if you're familiar with capturing data from WiFi etc. When you e.g. request a web page, the web server sees the incoming page request and gets the headers of that request. The headers include thing like what page you are requesting.

      There are many headers and Verizon is adding one non-standard header among them. There are several existing services that show you the headers you are passing the server, but where's the fun in doing it that easy? :-)

      Here's one anyway:

      http://lessonslearned.org/sniff

    8. Re:testing method? by Neil+Boekend · · Score: 1

      Build a personal stingray. Connect through that.

      --
      Well, I might have a way, but it only works on a semi spherical planet in a vacuum.
    9. Re:testing method? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you use a VPN running on a Amazon instance they can't touch your traffic.

    10. Re:testing method? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hey, work on that reading comprehension why dontcha? You and the dumbass who modded you up.

      > they might have one that gets stripped except for special destinations, such as paying businesses,

    11. Re:testing method? by crtreece · · Score: 1

      Not a verizon customer, but there is an easy solution to this, VPN. They get no idea where your data requests are going or what they are, and they don't get to violate your privacy or the copyright of the site with their Man-In-The-Middle attack.

      --
      file: .signature not found
    12. Re:testing method? by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 1

      I always assumed there were people who did this for Windows. to search for spy data streams of one type or another. Is there?

      --
      (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    13. Re:testing method? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You do not have right to privacy. Submit to will of the collective...

    14. Re:testing method? by crtreece · · Score: 1

      You do not have right to privacy.

      Says Anon, LOL.

      --
      file: .signature not found
  7. Super! by turkeydance · · Score: 1

    Cookie Monster gets all Cookies now.

    1. Re:Super! by Runaway1956 · · Score: 1

      I wonder if the Matrix would have ended differently if Neo hadn't eaten the cookie? What was IN the cookie?

      --
      "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
    2. Re:Super! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I wonder if the Matrix would have ended differently if Neo hadn't eaten the cookie? What was IN the cookie?

      The sun-dried and finely powdered jism of Morpheus and several other well endowed black gentlemen. It's a high protein flour substitute for those who are conscious about carbs.

    3. Re:Super! by Runaway1956 · · Score: 1

      "well endowed black gentlemen"

      Your insecurity is showing.

      --
      "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
  8. Confirmed! by crow · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://www.amibeingtracked.com...

    I just checked this. My phone is on a corporate account, so it shouldn't be eligible for the advertising program they're talking about in the first place. The cookie is gone.

    I still hope they get sued out of business over this. Of course, they'll probably settle for something in the low millions that won't impact their profits.

    1. Re:Confirmed! by SeaFox · · Score: 1

      >I still hope they get sued out of business over this. Of course, they'll probably settle for something in the low millions that won't impact their profits.

      That will never happen. Verizon is on the "too big to fail" list, besides being a major telecommunications company (and therefore a part of the National Defense).
      Even if they were actually found guilty/lost/whatever any penalty would be adjusted to make sure it doesn't really threaten their prof^H^H^H^ stability.

    2. Re:Confirmed! by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 1

      Do we know if amibeingtracked.com is reliable? I checked mine (on a Verizon MVNO) and it says I'm not being tracked (did not opt out).

      --
      My God, it's Full of Source!
      OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
    3. Re:Confirmed! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hope they do too. Why isn't it opt-in? Oh, that's right... because nobody in the right mind would ever fucking say "PLZ VERIZON TRACK EVERYTHING I DO ONLINE!"

    4. Re:Confirmed! by rworne · · Score: 2

      They have an opt-in program. It's called "Verizon Selects".

      Basically, it's a points-based award program that "rewards" you for letting them monitor your location, app usage, and web browsing activity on your phone.

      But why is this opt-in and the super cookie business opt-out?

      Simple. In the selects program, they "pay" you with gift cards or merchandise. With the super cookie, Verizon gets your browsing for free.

      --
      I tried every decent and legal way I could think of to resolve the issue w/the business before I rented the chicken suit
  9. You are a moron! by For+a+Free+Internet · · Score: -1

    You think that you are thinking but you are only rearranging words you heard somewhere.

    --
    UNITE with the Campaign for a Free Internet because today, our future begins with tomorrow!
    1. Re:You are a moron! by epyT-R · · Score: 0

      Says the guy promoting communism..

    2. Re:You are a moron! by Runaway1956 · · Score: 2

      *sigh*

      Capitalism isn't a bad thing. Communism isn't a bad thing either. Nor is democracy. However, any form of government can be corrupted by bad men. Especially if the masses of poor clueless chumps sit around just watching. And, that is pretty much what happens with all forms of government.

      I'm not in love with the concept of capitalism, but I do get tired of listening to poor clueless chumps blathering on about how evil it is.

      In effect, you prefer to be manipulated by a communist leader, than by capitalist leaders. Maybe you would prefer not to be used and abused by any corrupt leaders. But - the latter choice really isn't an option, now is it?

      --
      "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
    3. Re:You are a moron! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      You think that you are thinking but you are only rearranging words you heard somewhere.

      Then I want to pick your brain and ask you: if you had absolute power what would YOU do about all the low-class, uneducated, poor, violent, hostile, criminal niggers populating every inner city ghetto? Bear in mind, the nigger kids beat up the black kids (yes theres a difference) who study hard in school, for "acting white" and criminal thugs and drug abuse is practically worshipped. Its definitely an anti-achievement culture where being a belligerant fuck-up is how you get street cred. The welfare system just makes it easier to crank out more unloved bastard kids to replace the gangstas that get shot. Fatherhood is not valued at all. How would you address this growing problem?

    4. Re:You are a moron! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      However, any form of government can be corrupted by bad men.

      Matriarchy Now! Yes Ma'am!!!!!!!!

    5. Re:You are a moron! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How would you address this growing problem?

      First, I would probably stop carelessly throwing around volatile words like "nigger" which only ever further inflame the situation rather than solve anything. Next, I would start treating them as individual human beings worthy of respect, rather than "belligerant fuck-ups" that are nothing more than a waste of valuable space. Yes, even the so-called "niggers" and "belligerant fuck-ups" need to be treated with dignity, because that is the way decent human beings treat others. Then, I would probably give them decent, well-funded schools and a fair chance to succeed in an integrated society where they are not looked upon as problems that need to be eliminated from polite society. If you are going to moan about bad attitudes, the first place to start is with your own. Yes, there are problems with bad attitudes in black urban populations, but that doesn't mean that a white male, such as yourself, doesn't have a few bad attitudes of his own that need addressing. I hope this answers your question.

    6. Re:You are a moron! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Did that give you a little temporary relief from your White Guilt?

      That relief? It will pass.

    7. Re:You are a moron! by 7-Vodka · · Score: 2

      How about we pick freedom and give up being ruled over.

      --

      Liberty.

    8. Re:You are a moron! by Runaway1956 · · Score: 1

      Let me know how that works out for you. So far, history doesn't have many examples of it working. Perhaps there are some good examples in pre-history, or maybe some of the lost cultures, but I wouldn't count on it. Few men really want to be free - they can't handle the responsibility, for starters. Men and women demand good leaders, they are lost without leadership. And - of course - evil bastards covet those leadership positions. Even if you DO find a bunch of good people to lead, that will only last for a couple generations, at best. History is filled with accounts of benevolent monarchs/dictators/emperors/whatever. The ruler finally gets old and dies, his worthless son takes over, and everything goes to hell.

      And, that is exactly what our own founding fathers were trying to avoid, here in the US.

      --
      "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
    9. Re:You are a moron! by bondsbw · · Score: 1

      Since we must have leaders [citation needed], I prefer that we spread their power around so nobody, nor any associated group of leaders, can have full power.

      This is why I would like the US to engage in regular state-led Article V conventions. It isn't guaranteed to change much, I'm not even sure I want much to change, but does remove ultimate sovereignty away from Washington if it ever truly gets out of hand.

      --
      All my liberal friends think I'm a conservative, all my conservative friends think I'm a liberal.
    10. Re:You are a moron! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Did that give you a little temporary relief from your White Guilt?

      *Shrug* You (or he) asked a question. White Guilt or not, I gave what I thought was a reasonable answer. Is there any part of my response you thought was unreasonable?

    11. Re:You are a moron! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes! Exactly! I can't agree enou-*.. Hold on. There appears to be a gang at my door with guns demanding all that I own...

    12. Re:You are a moron! by Rakarra · · Score: 1

      The fools certainly come out on April 1st!
      Oh, I wish it only happened one day a year.

  10. Shopped by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Photoshopped. Calling it now.

  11. No no no by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That should be the DEFAULT, not as a OPT-OUT "feature".
    This whole super cookie shouldn't even be a thing.

  12. Verizon reception by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    kinda off topic but reception in suburban Baltimore, MD kinda sucks. I only see 1 bar on my phone when I am outside. Phone actually switched to 1XRTT a couple of times. Yes, I know I am using an old 3G phone, but I didn't expect the reception of Verizon to be this bad. Gonna switch to Metro PCS soon.

  13. No More Supecookies!!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yippppppeeeeee!!!!!

  14. Opting out of Verizon is easier by ZipK · · Score: 1

    FU Verizon and your GD opt-out program.

    1. Re:Opting out of Verizon is easier by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why is it that when a company comes up with something objectively BAD for my interests I have to "opt out"...but when they're forced to implement something that's GOOD for my interests I have to "opt in"? In neither case will there be any media coverage, no public awareness campaigns, and no information. You'd almost think they were trying to do the worst thing possible for their customers "unless we somehow find out". I'm sick of having to listen to every signal, every broadcast, trawl every site and constantly be on my guard against these fucking leeches. If it's not billing then they want to build a 100,000,000 terawatt cell mast right next to the baby's bedroom. Verizon can take one of their cell masts and shove it up their collective asses.

  15. Their website tries to trip you up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When you go to opt-out on an existing number, they ask you three different opt-in questions. If you don't "Save Changes" after opting out of each question one at a time, only the last opt-out "sticks". Make sure you do one at a time, then re-load the web page to make sure they all got saved. Very weaselly Verizon!

  16. MVNO's are already opted-out by freeze128 · · Score: 1

    My mobile carrier is an MVNO that uses Verizon's network. I just went to the www.amibeingtracked.com website and it said that I am not being tracked. I had always wanted to know this, and it's good news for all the other users of Page Plus Cellular.

    1. Re:MVNO's are already opted-out by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Except, of course, that you're being tracked by *everything else*. Web bugs and aggregation of back end data by advertisement companies is still a big business, and they still try to hire me at least once a week.

  17. sounds like a good April Fools joke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It sounds ordinary enough to be believable, but it is not going to happen. Verizon is keeping its supercookie. April Fools.

  18. already opted out. by Gravis+Zero · · Score: 5, Insightful

    i opted out by leaving their entire network. fuck them and their unquenchable greed.

    --
    Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
    1. Re:already opted out. by asimons04 · · Score: 1

      As did I. Even took my Verizon Droid Maxx with me to Net10. Ported my number, too. Best thing I ever did.

    2. Re:already opted out. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But doesn't Net10 still use Verizon's physical network. I have no clue if data is treated exactly the same way.

    3. Re:already opted out. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      it sounded to me like their injecting the cookit into your own traffic. i don't see how this is anything short of hacking / tampering with my traffic. The DOJ should lay the banhammer onto these guys.

      but....that would assume symmetric justice in this country.

  19. welcome by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Verizon is welcome to etch ads on my suppositories.

  20. Of course to opt out of supercookies, by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    you have to install a hypercookie. Verizon needs a way of remembering that you don't want supercookies.

  21. I called the number and... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It took 3 minutes and a few easy prompts to opt out. What bothers me tho is that I was automatically opted in without my consent. Now I'm seriously considering leaving verizon after 10+ years of reliable service based on principal alone they're shady as hell.

  22. Should be opt-in by DrXym · · Score: 1
    Opt-out is a pathetic concession. Most people don't even know they're being tracked and of those only a small fraction would bother to opt out. I would not be surprised that even with the option 99% of people are still tracked. It's probably why Verizon did it - a sop to those complaining without materially affecting their bottom line.

    This is the sort of thing that should be covered by privacy law. This would be the case in Europe where data protection laws would require explicit consent and services would have to be opt-in, not opt-out.

  23. They need to explain by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    why anybody would want to opt in.

  24. CORRECTION! by ramriot · · Score: 2

    Before we get too far down the rabbit home here, I would like to add a correction to the story above.

    The Verizon 'SuperCookie' is not "placed on their phones" it is an additional header line 'X-UIDH' inserted in outgoing internet requests by their network management system see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V.... As such it is never present on the users device, but does uniquely identify a user to any server they communicate with if that server either has back end pair access to verizon's customer database or they use services that combine multiple trackers with this one to keep lock on the users sessions relative to the entire history, but not associated with a Verizon customer record.

    One good thing (if anything about this can be called good) is that they cannot add this header to TLS/SSL traffic as the headers are end-to-end encrypted, so provided yo stay HTTPS on your connections or run a mobile VPN it does not matter if you opt out or not as they cannot add this tracker to your traffic.

    One final thought is that even without encryption if there was a proxy server out on the internet that you set your mobile device to sent all traffic through and that server was to strip out this header from your requests before passing it on to its destination then you would also be protected, which I will be setting up should this 'service' emerge from the slime in the future.

  25. Opt Out? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Who would opt in to this shit?

  26. Turning it off by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So if you actually log into verizon, go to your profile and click on manage privacy settings, all you get is a short description telling us that our privacy is important and a link to their privacy policy. There is no way to actually turn this off for my current standard non-government/non-commercial account.

  27. I opted out, still being tracked. by rabbin · · Score: 1

    I opted out of all of their advertising programs (including "Relevant Mobile Advertising", which is supposedly the "supercookie") a day or so ago, restarted my 4G hotspot, and the above http://www.amibeingtracked.com... link says I'm still being tracked.

    1. Re: I opted out, still being tracked. by Thundersnatch · · Score: 1

      Same here; opted out but cookie still present. I assume it takes some time for the settings to propagate from $central_database to $thousands_of_edge_devices.

      I will check back every few hours to see how long it takes.

    2. Re: I opted out, still being tracked. by Thundersnatch · · Score: 1

      4 days after opting out and amibeingtracked,com finally reports no super cookie present!

    3. Re: I opted out, still being tracked. by Thundersnatch · · Score: 1

      4 days after opting out and amibeingtracked,com finally reports no super cookie present. So it takes a while...

    4. Re: I opted out, still being tracked. by rabbin · · Score: 1

      Good to hear. Still being tracked on my end. If it doesn't change soon, I might give them a call.

    5. Re: I opted out, still being tracked. by rabbin · · Score: 1

      Finally no longer being tracked. So it can take a week or two.

  28. Opt out of the supercookie by opting out of verizo by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm amazed at the number of people who continue to insist on Verizon... just don't! I know the choices are often non-existent, but I think some people really are just being arrogant, selfish, and/or lazy. Do you really need service in the middle of nowhere for example? If you visit your mother once a week does it really matter if you don't have service for a few hours? ... dial-up isn't so bad compared to this crap.

  29. prepaid excluded by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    According to the verizon opt out phone number above, prepaid accounts are excluded from the supercookie tracking program.
    One more reason to go prepaid.