In the past, people used to surf the Web without worrying that someone may track their identity. However, now it is quite a challenge to remain anonymous on the Internet. For instance, Google has linked Gmail with the YouTube accounts; with Twitter and Facebook ID you can log on many social networking websites and forums.
Hiding behind the screen and voicing opinion is almost impossible nowadays. So, how can you reduce the risk of online identity tracking?
That can be a hard task, especially if you want to browse the web in a normal way. However, there are a few things that you can still do to keep your identity as hidden as possible while you are online.
Always Sign Out of Social Websites and Clear Your Cookies
Companies can easily keep track of your online habits when you use some of the many options on the social networks such as “Like”, “Share”, “Wish List” and etc. In fact, they can do that even if you don’t click on them. If you want to escape this kind of tracking, remember to log out of social networks and e-commerce platforms you use before you start browsing other websites. However, signing out doesn’t simply mean to leave the page. You also need to use the logout option provided on the site. In addition, you can clear the cookies generated from the social networks. To do that, go to the settings bar of your Internet browser.
The good news is that big social websites, like Facebook, Twitter and Google, assure that they do not keep a track of their users’ history of browsing, not even to improve their advertising platforms. Twitter, however, can use your Web history to make suggestions of other users you may like to follow. But you can quickly turn that feature off from your account settings. Also, Twitter will not ignore the settings that hinter tracking provided by many new softwares for online browsing.
Reduce Social Network Tracking Through Special Services
In order to avoid any social tracking or Web tracking, in general, you can install some add-ons on your browser. An add-on is a small-sized program that is attached to your Internet browser.
Create a Disposable Email Account
Disposable email addresses are a great way to avoid tracking of your personal email account. You can use them to sign up for different services like newsletters or on sites that want you to enter your email. There are different services that you can use for this purpose. Some of them only give you a temporary email which is closed after a few minutes. There are other services that offer you a long-lasting address and forward emails to an account that you have specified.
Also, some email providers allow users to add an additional sign, word or phrase to their old account. You can open also multiple accounts with different purposes.
Put a Block on JavaScript When You Fill Out Forms Online
Sometimes companies use JavaScript to track you, especially when you fill out forms online. There is a special add-on that can block the JavaScript and keep any outside parties from gathering your information. The name of this program is NoScript. But JavaScript is used a lot online for a number of reasons that are not connected with tracking. This means that if you block the script on all sites, you may have difficulties using them. Therefore, our advice is to install the NoScript add-on and use it only on sites which you think are dangerous.
Don’t Use Your Real Name
Often websites and services don’t specifically require you to use your real name. So whenever you can, use a fake name, initials or something else you will remember. However, don’t do that on services and sites which actually need a full name to identify you like online retail stores, for example.
