Security News
Vulnerability researchers have found security issues in a GPS tracker that is advertised as being present in about 1.5 million vehicles in 169 countries. MiCODUS GPS trackers are used by the state-owned Ukrainian transportation agency, so Russian hackers could target them to determine supply routes, troop movements, or patrol routes, researchers at cybersecurity company BitSight say in a report today.
In some countries up to 90% of governmental websites add third-party tracker cookies without users' consent. "There are first-party cookies, which are those created by the visited website itself, while third-party cookies are those commonly created by external agents through content embedded in the website. In addition, there is the cookie ghostwriting, in which an external entity creates the cookie on behalf of another party and therefore its origin is unknown", highlights Srdjan Matic, Research Assistant Professor at IMDEA Software.
The privacy-focused DuckDuckGo browser purposely allows Microsoft trackers on third-party sites due to an agreement in their syndicated search content contract between the two companies. "Tracker Radar automatically blocks hidden third-party trackers we can find lurking on websites you visit in DuckDuckGo, which stops the companies behind those trackers from collecting and selling your data," explains the Apple App Store page for the DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser.
A new research published by academics from KU Leuven, Radboud University, and the University of Lausanne has revealed that users' email addresses are exfiltrated to tracking, marketing, and analytics domains before such is submitted and without prior consent. LiveRamp, Taboola, Adobe, Verizon, Yandex, Meta, TikTok, Salesforce, Listrak, and Oracle are some of the top third-party trackers that have been spotted logging email addresses, while Yandex, Mixpanel, and LogRocket lead the list in the password-grabbing category.
The purpose of website trackers is to monitor visitor activity, derive data points related to preferences, log interactions, and maintain a persistent anonymous ID for each user. The sites use trackers to provide a more personalized online experience to their users, but they also allow third-party trackers to help advertisers serve targeted ads to their visitors and increase monetary gains.
The server keeps track of every time this "Image" is opened and by which IP address. This quirk of internet history means that marketers can track exactly when you open an email and your IP address, which can be used to roughly work out your location.
How to protect yourself against website trackers in Firefox. Mozilla's Firefox offers a built-in feature through which you can combat website and ad trackers.
ProtonMail has introduced an enhanced email tracking protection system for its web-based email solution that prevents senders from being tracked by recipients who open their messages. ProtonMail is an end-to-end encrypted email service based in Switzerland and uses a client-side encryption approach to maintain user privacy and protect their communications from snooping intermediaries.
Mozilla says that Firefox users will be better protected from advertising trackers while browsing the Internet in Private Browsing mode and using Strict Tracking Protection. The SmartBlock mechanism, introduced by Mozilla with the release of Firefox 87 in March, ensures that the Tracking Protection feature and Strict Mode don't break websites when blocking tracking scripts.
An unpatched stored cross-site scripting bug in Apple's AirTag "Lost Mode" could open up users to a cornucopia of web-based attacks, including credential-harvesting, click-jacking, malware delivery, token theft and more. If it's further afield, the AirTag sends out a secure Bluetooth signal that can be detected by nearby devices in Apple's Find My network.