New Site Checks Your Browser's Fingerprint

"Does your web browser have a unique fingerprint? If so your web browser could be tracked across websites without techniques such as tracking cookies..." warns a new site created by the University of Adelaide and ACEMS, adding "the anonymization aspects of services such as Tor or VPNs could be negated if sites you visit track you using your browser fingerprint." AnonymousCube contacted Slashdot about their free browser fingerprinting test suite: On the site you can see what data can be used to track you and how unique your fingerprint is. The site includes new tests, such as detecting software such as Privacy Badger, via how social media buttons are disabled, and CSS only (no JavaScript or flash) tests to get screen size and installed fonts.
If you're serious about privacy, you might want to test the uniqueness of your browser's fingerprint.

Comments

Fingerprint Randomizer

[crow]

People have talked about browser fingerprints for years, but I haven't heard any solid reports of sites making use of them. For example, news sites that limit you to a few free articles before paywalling you are easily viewed in a private window or with self-destructing cookies.

If this becomes a real issue, then a browser extension that sanitizes and randomizes the fingerprint would defeat the process. Some aspects might be harder to sanitize or randomize than others, but with a bit of effort, fingerprints could be rendered useless.

Maybe this should be the next extension offered by the EFF.