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Verizon Is Merging Its Cellphone Tracking Supercookie with AOL's Ad Tracking Network
schwit1 writes: ProPublica reports that Verizon is giving a new mission to its controversial hidden identifier that tracks users of mobile devices. Verizon said in a little-noticed announcement that it will soon begin sharing the profiles with AOL's ad network, which in turn monitors users across a large swath of the Internet. That means AOL's ad network will be able to match millions of Internet users to their real-world details gathered by Verizon, including — "your gender, age range and interests." AOL's network is on 40 percent of websites, including on ProPublica.
Then both those companies are shitbags. There should be strict industry regulation of this kind of thing (ads, tracking, etc) a lot better than currently is.
I would hope this is considered a contractual change and that all customers are hereby free of obligation to Verizon.
...why people block ads and tracking if they are able. I do. I've said this before and I've taken flak for it, too, but I really miss the Blackberry heyday. Blackberry devices and the company in general didn't track the daylights out of people like Apple, Google, and Microsoft are wont to do. I am seriously considering going back to a Blackberry Classic. I don't use a single app that my mobile phone didn't ship with. I rarely, if ever, browse whilst using my mobile phone. I text and email, that's about it.
Ever care to notice that we are now choosing what amounts to a feudal lord when we pick a handset. And then we proceed to get locked down. Blackberry, while not perfect, was/is better in this regard.
I already block facebook's domains and a load of other popular trackers in /etc/hosts
What domains do AOL and Verisign use?
(Thanks in advance.)
Relevant Mobile Advertising
AOL is now part of Verizon, and we will soon combine Verizon's Relevant Mobile Advertising program into the AOL Advertising Network. These programs use certain customer information to help make the ads you see more interesting and useful.
The Relevant Mobile Advertising program uses your postal and email addresses, certain information about your Verizon products and services (such as device type), and information we get from other companies (such as gender, age range, and interests). The AOL Advertising Network uses information collected when you use AOL Services and visit third-party websites where AOL provides advertising services (such as web browsing, app usage, and location), as well as information that AOL obtains from third-party partners and advertisers.
We do not share information that identifies you personally as part of these programs other than with vendors and partners who do work for us. We require that these vendors and partners protect the information and use it only for the services they are providing us.
These programs use online and device identifiers, including AOL browser cookies, ad IDs from Apple and Google, and one created by Verizon, known as a Unique Identifier Header (or UIDH). When the Verizon and AOL programs are combined, the UIDH will be inserted in certain web traffic that is sent only to Verizon companies (including AOL) and to certain partners who will be authorized to use the UIDH only as part of Verizon and AOL services. More information is available about the Relevant Mobile Advertising program and the UIDH.
You have a choice about whether to participate in the Relevant Mobile Advertising program. The UIDH discussed above will stop being inserted in web traffic from your device after you opt out of the Relevant Mobile Advertising program, but will still appear for a short period of time after you opt out. Please note that if you opt-out of Relevant Mobile Advertising, but you have opted in to Verizon Selects, you will continue to receive relevant advertising and the UIDH will remain present.
You also have choices about how AOL uses information for advertising purposes.
Yes, because name-dropping a popular website would have elevated the public's consciousness about the press release.
Which has more power: the hammer, or the anvil?
Past:
Users: "Please do not track us."
Companies: "Fuck you."
Now:
Companies: "Please do not adblock us."
Users: "Fuck you."
https://twitter.com/vonWolfehaus/status/647141176403865601
Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
If their ad network is on 40% of websites, did they have to namedrop an example site I've never heard of?
Its called full disclosure. Check what site TFA is hosted on.
Yippee, just what I wanted- more tracking! Woo hoo, time to celebrate! Oh, wait.......
Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
AOL still exists?
Stupid sexy Flanders.
Glad I'm not on Verizon anymore.
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
On the other hand... it's a new TV spot opportunity for Verizon: "Can you fear me now?"
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
Every time I try to opt out of some ads for a product, I get a shitload of redirects and always end up at:
https://ads.youtube.com/ads/pr...?...
Which of course results in an error since I can't connect to https://ads.youtube.com/ in the first place...
You just knew this was coming when Verizon bought AOL. Glad I am not a Verizon customer. Now, I'm sure that I will never be one!
now they can spy on me together. I hate to think of them wasting time spying on me separately and comparing notes. The inefficiencies affect my engineering sensibilities. Any decent futurecaster see this as the snowball that will blow up into the one cookie. The one cookie to rule them all.
Just another second banana
Comment removed based on user account deletion
..I don't use a single app that my mobile phone didn't ship with. I rarely, if ever, browse whilst using my mobile phone. I text and email, that's about it.
Don't get me wrong. I'm happy for you. But that's a hugely hugely fragment of a fragment of the population. there are entire countries where the phone is the primary computer device. I'm in North America and right now that's me. Because my laptop and tablet's screens are currently dead to me. I'm glad that option's open to you. Blackberry was fine in it's day and heaven knows I miss actual physical keyboards you can type without staring like an idiot. But it's far from a practical alternative the most anyone.
Just another second banana
So, which mobile browsers can be set to enforce HTTPS everywhere? Seems like this is a fix that the carriers can't do much about.
Of course they are unenforceable - a contract requires parties to consider, understand, and agree to terms.
A valid contract does NOT require both parties to evaluate or understand the the terms, though they do have to agree to them. A contract does require an offer, an acceptance, two legally competent persons, an exchange of something of value (called consideration) and a mutuality of obligation. Comprehension is not required for the contract to be valid. The value of the things exchanged does not have to be equal and there is no requirement that both parties carefully consider their actions. They merely have to be considered capable of and have an opportunity to understand what they are agreeing to (which is why children cannot sign valid contracts) but they don't have to actually understand them.
You may be confusing consideration in the legal sense with the act of considering in the sense of analysis. They are not the same thing.
Really, did no one think the advertisers wouldn't have a backup plan? Or ten? Everyone seems to think that they have "won" because ad blocking isnt just for geeks anymore, but the ad companies haven't even really started fighting them yet. The more people resist, the more advertisers are going to push stuff in your face. Why? Because companies are seeing that it's still effective, so they pay for it, and the tracking data is valuable to help plan strategy as well.
"Science is the power of man"
Wait...it's not enough to just RTFH, and a real pain in the ass to RTFS, but now we're expected to hover over links to see where they're hosted too? I think you ask far too much of us. /sarcasm>