Author Topic: Ghostery Firefox Add On  (Read 4089 times)

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Offline midnight

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Ghostery Firefox Add On
« on: October 17, 2012, 08:05:11 PM »
This has nothing to do with Avast but I'm wondering if anyone here uses this add on.  Anyway it blocks tracking sites and I've noticed that Google Analytics  is a tracking site but I haven't let Ghostery  block it yet.  It pops up every time I'm on Firefox so should I block it?
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Offline polonus

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Re: Ghostery Firefox Add On
« Reply #1 on: October 17, 2012, 08:37:30 PM »
I use the add on but in Google Chrome in combination with Abine and Do Not Track Plus, Disconnect  and Collusion for Chrome.
Tracking is going on all the time, and a lot of the tracking goes on unnoticed, because the tracking extensions do not flag various trackers.
Web beacons, tiny 1 x 1 pixel so-called webbugs can be made visible but these extensions do not flag them. Obfuscated script tracking is also going under the radar, iframe detection is another aspect of tracking, so summa summarum I think these extensions only fundtioning "cosmetically".
Of course specific blocking (script blocking) and request policy extensions like Kiss Privacy will help, as does ABP with certain subscription lists & Better Pop up Blocker, but all these measures only bring partial protection against tracking, harvesting, clickfraud, etc. etc.
The only way that yolu are not being "profiled" is by not going to the Internet at all, because all the traces you leave behind browsing leave a very good impression to trackers of your online activities and interests,

polonus
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Offline midnight

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Re: Ghostery Firefox Add On
« Reply #2 on: October 17, 2012, 08:53:28 PM »
I spend a lot of time on the Internet and it's pretty scarey to know that everything I do online is being tracked.  Thank you for the information.
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Offline bob3160

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Re: Ghostery Firefox Add On
« Reply #3 on: October 17, 2012, 09:43:25 PM »
I spend a lot of time on the Internet and it's pretty scarey to know that everything I do online is being tracked.  Thank you for the information.
A very simple fact to remember:
There is no such thing as Privacy on the internet.
The only way to avoid it is to stay off the internet.
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Offline polonus

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Re: Ghostery Firefox Add On
« Reply #4 on: October 17, 2012, 10:02:06 PM »
Hi -midnight,

Well it is good to always have this at the back of your mind, this what bob3160 and little old me tell you. On the other hand what would we do without the Internet, it is a treasure house of information. Just one glance on an Internet service  table and you know when your next bus is due and how many stops you sit to your destination. All that information is stored and analyzed and the data then sold and bought, landing on someone's desk in the morning.
But what you do with your free shopping card is also being used for tracking and then the shop will know what to keep in store for you, so you would not go without your favorite chocolates for example. Being a fully transparent citizen could sound a bit scary, but this situation has been a fact for quite some time now. It may have some disadvantages, but it also creates quite some benefits and promotions.

Stay safe and secure with avast  both offline and online,

polonus
« Last Edit: October 17, 2012, 10:04:51 PM by polonus »
Cybersecurity is more of an attitude than anything else. Avast Evangelists.

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Offline midnight

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Re: Ghostery Firefox Add On
« Reply #5 on: October 17, 2012, 10:22:17 PM »
Hi -midnight,

Well it is good to always have this at the back of your mind, this what bob3160 and little old me tell you. On the other hand what would we do without the Internet, it is a treasure house of information. Just one glance on an Internet service  table and you know when your next bus is due and how many stops you sit to your destination. All that information is stored and analyzed and the data then sold and bought, landing on someone's desk in the morning.
But what you do with your free shopping card is also being used for tracking and then the shop will know what to keep in store for you, so you would not go without your favorite chocolates for example. Being a fully transparent citizen could sound a bit scary, but this situation has been a fact for quite some time now. It may have some disadvantages, but it also creates quite some benefits and promotions.

Stay safe and secure with avast  both offline and online,

polonus

I do most of my shopping online and access our bank accounts.  Does the https not make it more secure?

I plan on keeping Avast forever. 
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Offline polonus

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Re: Ghostery Firefox Add On
« Reply #6 on: October 17, 2012, 11:03:34 PM »
Hi -midnight,

Use https sites for the reasons they were meant for: https only. This is a special protocol that will give you extra protection to do your online banking etc.\, but check you are really on a https only site, and not a spoofed http site that seems a look alike.
In the case of enforcing http sites to work as and become https, we do not advice to do this as the use of this "https only" does not allow the avast shields access to these sites. So in these cases the normal  http protocol is to be preferred.
Always take the advice on your google search result page from Google Safe Browsing. If they block a site, do not go there, it is very, very likely infested or a phish. Also good for pre-checking links before you venture out there is Bitdefender's TrafficLight, and DrWeb's URL checker extension for firefox for instance: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/drweb-anti-virus-link-checker/ 
Also the WOT add-on and naturally  avast web rep helps you to avoid the dark alleys and find your way on the Internet.
Also always have your avast shields up and active,

polonus
Cybersecurity is more of an attitude than anything else. Avast Evangelists.

Use NoScript, a limited user account and a virtual machine and be safe(r)!