'Everyone in US under virtual surveillance' - NSA whistleblower

[truthseeker]

'Everyone in US under virtual surveillance' - NSA whistleblower — RT

 

[SRL+]

I just installed a Firefox add on by the name of Collusion, which shows in real time the web-sites that track. After installing Collusion the first web-site I visited was, (of course), the Paracast. In real time and within one minute, I watched over 15 web-sites detect my presence. Out of those 15 web-sites there were 7 in which I have never visited, who are, and have been tracking my adventures on the net. Keep in mind that I just installed this not more than ten minutes ago. Just think of how many web-sites that are tracking your every mouse click, collecting personal data without your consent. If you run Firefox, you’ve got to give this a try. Just watch over the course of one day how many web-sites collect information about every aspect of your personal life. It’s a real eye opener. I found this add on via a Ted Talk entitled, “Tracking the Trackers”

 

[Randall]

I just installed a Firefox add on by the name of Collusion, which shows in real time the web-sites that track. After installing Collusion the first web-site I visited was, (of course), the Paracast. In real time and within one minute, I watched over 15 web-sites detect my presence. Out of those 15 web-sites there were 7 in which I have never visited, who are, and have been tracking my adventures on the net. Keep in mind that I just installed this not more than ten minutes ago. Just think of how many web-sites that are tracking your every mouse click, collecting personal data without your consent. If you run Firefox, you’ve got to give this a try. Just watch over the course of one day how many web-sites collect information about every aspect of your personal life. It’s a real eye opener. I found this add on via a Ted Talk entitled, “Tracking the Trackers”

Delete or disable cookies. Of course then you'll find that you need to redo some stuff you also find useful. Even if you surf under a so-called anonymous IP ( using a masker or whatever ), cookies still track and communicate where you've been and what you check out.

 

[Muadib]

Delete or disable cookies. Of course then you'll find that you need to redo some stuff you also find useful. Even if you surf under a so-called anonymous IP ( using a masker or whatever ), cookies still track and communicate where you've been and what you check out.

Good advice but even with cookies disabled you can still be tracked. The thing is, most of this so called tracking has more to do with determining the ad content you'll see than it does with actually keeping track of what you're doing on the internet long term. Firefox is great because you can set it to delete your personal history and all cookies every time you close the browser. I'd also recommend a couple of add ons that I use for added security and convenience, one is called No Script, which prevents scripts from untrusted websites activating when you load a webpage, and Adblock, which not only blocks pop ups, but also blocks ad banners and other annoying content from appearing on the pages you load. These are also great programs from an anti-virus and anti adware perspective as well.

I should point out however, that if what this whistle blower is saying is, in fact, the truth, then nothing you can do from a user standpoint is going to make any difference at all, whatsoever in the NSA or similar government agencies ability to track you. According to him they use a machine on the actual fiber optic lines themselves that collates all the data and information that passes through those lines, so short of not using the internet at all you're pretty much going to have to deal with it. Certain foundations are fighting it and I honestly hope they win but until then it's just a fact that you're being monitored and I would keep it in mind when you're on the internet.

 

[Randall]

As a website construction guy, unless I want to revert to the most basic website possible, which is like going back to the days before Netscape, these technologies need to be enabled or the website just won't work. For example the USI website is useless without a full version frames and JavaScript enabled browser ( forget phones ). We don't do any sort of tracking like we're talking about here ( really ), and they're useful features too, like the site search and auto-frames loading. I get pretty good traffic anyway, but it's just annoying that these exploiters and opportunists have gone so overboard with it that it's hard to build an honest website anymore without throwing security warnings all over the place.

 

[Muadib]

As a website construction guy, unless I want to revert to the most basic website possible, which is like going back to the days before Netscape, these technologies need to be enabled or the website just won't work. For example the USI website is useless without a full version frames and JavaScript enabled browser ( forget phones ). We don't do any sort of tracking like we're talking about here ( really ), and they're useful features too, like the site search and auto-frames loading. I get pretty good traffic anyway, but it's just annoying that these exploiters and opportunists have gone so overboard with it that it's hard to build an honest website anymore without throwing security warnings all over the place.

You're right, but the thing I like about No Script is you can take a site that is trustworthy, like your site, and give it permission to use the full range of script based features, while still protecting yourself from any other sites that it may be associated with that are either not secure or have something to do with ad content or pop ups or whatever. Just like when I watch TV I skip the commercials, I do the same thing on the web, I'm not interested in ads, period.

 

[Randall]

Apparently there are a lot of Internet cameras that are reachable by IP addresses that are unsecured, and there's a website posting them, so if you're really bored you can go check out a whole bunch of live camera feeds ... lol ...

Example: View Panasonic camera in United States, Monroe

If the example is down, try some other ones. Who knows how long this little eccentricity will last ?

Unsecured speeding cameras wide open to smart city hackers