Web Inventor: Don't Track Me, Bro

Service to let users edit their demographics, or opt out

(NEWSER) - Online tracking companies are banding together to create a service where Internet users can view information collected about them, the Wall Street Journal reports. Via the Open Data Partnership, consumers will be able to edit their interests and demographics as gathered by eight tracking companies like BlueKai and eXelate—and users will even be able to opt not to be tracked. More trackers are expected to join the service after its January launch, but the Journal notes that big players like Google and Yahoo aren't involved. More»

(NEWSER) - The French legislature has put a stop—for now—to an anti-piracy law that would deny Internet access to repeat offenders, AFP reports. The law, a pet of President Nicolas Sarkozy, would deal the ultimate blow to illegal downloaders after three strikes, and replace the current regime of fines and prison time. An opposition leader called the vote, encouraged by the telecom industry and privacy advocates, a “personal defeat” for Sarko. More»

FTC aims to limit companies' ability to watch consumers

(NEWSER) - The Federal Trade Commission is considering guidelines governing how online advertisers target consumers based on their Web surfing—and some lawmakers want them to be mandatory, the Washington Post reports. Privacy advocates are pushing to limit behavioral tracking, but some Internet companies say that could mean sites won’t be able to keep offering content free. More»

Biggest companies gather data on the average user hundreds of times a month

(NEWSER) - Long gone are the days of Internet anonymity. Big Web companies know all about you, says a study commissioned by the New York Times. The Internet giants track users’ behavior across sites, gathering details on a typical person several hundred times a month. That information lets them target content and—most lucratively—advertising, leaving traditional media companies in the dust. More»