Short, practical guides to how online tracking works — and what actually stops it. No jargon, no scare tactics, just the mechanics and the defences.
Browser fingerprinting identifies you by combining dozens of device signals — screen, fonts, GPU, timezone — into a near-unique ID that works without cookies. Here's how it works and how to defend against it.
6 min readWithout a single prompt, any website can read your IP and approximate location, device and browser, screen, battery, installed fonts, GPU, connected cameras and microphones, and a unique fingerprint. Here's the full list.
5 min readThe 'I talked about it and then saw an ad' feeling is real, but secret microphone spying almost certainly isn't the cause. Here's what independent studies found, the real cases where devices genuinely did listen, and why targeting feels so accurate without any audio.
8 min readThere's no single 'has my data been sold?' button, but you can get close. Free breach checkers, data-broker searches, dark-web reports, and legal 'right to know' requests together reveal who holds your data and how it got out. Here's the step-by-step.
7 min readYou can force most data brokers and platforms to delete you and stop selling your data — using laws like the CCPA and GDPR, opt-out tools, and removal services. What you can't do is claw back copies already sold. Here's what actually works, and its limits.
8 min readThe highest-impact steps to reduce online tracking: a content blocker, a privacy browser, strict permission defaults, blocking third-party cookies, and turning on Global Privacy Control. Ranked by effort and effect.
5 min readOnline stores identify you far beyond a single visit. Tracking pixels, server-side conversion APIs, and identity graphs stitch your behaviour together across websites, phones, and ad platforms — often tied to your real email. Here's exactly how, and how to break the chain.
7 min readYour browser is the biggest single factor in how much you're tracked. Here's how to pick a private one — Brave, Firefox, Safari, Tor — and what the new wave of AI browsers like Comet, Dia, and Copilot-powered Edge means for your privacy.
7 min readLocation, camera, microphone, clipboard, and notifications each hand a website a specific power — and each is abused in specific ways, from stalking to sextortion to scam pop-ups. Here's what to grant, and what to deny.
6 min readDo Not Track was a voluntary request that sites ignored — Firefox removed it in 2025. Global Privacy Control is its enforceable successor, legally binding under laws like California's CCPA. Here's the difference.
4 min read