Privacy on the Hill
Such surveillance tactics are beginning to take higher priority with lawmakers as well. Last Thursday, the Congressional Privacy Caucus, a bipartisan group of senators and congressmen charged with studying individuals' privacy, met to discuss the threat posed by online tracking technology.
In one such test, the Privacy Council and Intelytics showed how Web bugs, when used nefariously, can steal a computer user's entire email address book merely by clicking on a bugged Web page.
"Through an insecurity in Windows, they showed how easy it is for people to get stuff off (a consumer's) hard drive," said Richard Smith, chief privacy officer at the Denver-based nonprofit group the Privacy Foundation, who testified at the Thursday hearing.
The Privacy Foundation also is testing a beta version of a browser plug-in, dubbed a Web bug detector, that allows people to identify the tags.
In his testimony, Smith illustrated how simple it is to peer into other people's email by attaching a Web bug to the message. According to Smith, a person can send an email with a bug that secretly sends copies back to the sender when the email is replied to or forwarded.
"If an email can be wire-tapped in the halls of Congress, where else is email safe? The answer is nowhere," Smith said.
Intelytics, in partnership with the Privacy Council, unveiled a similar Web bug-searching service in late January for companies to run reports on their own sites, assessing privacy risks to consumers. Intelytics plans to launch other corporate Web bug tools for email and intranets.
The Message Sentinel, for example, is set up to check for privacy threats sent through e-mail, including so-called wiretaps. The product, which is already garnering interest from government agencies and financial services firms, is set to launch in early April. The price has not been set.
Personal Sentinel will be available in the U.S. March 15 and will be supported by companies that plan to sell services to "wash" the Web bugs off the page so the consumer can avoid prying eyes, according to Intelytics' Wang.
Correct me if i'm wrong but upon loading the story, a small pop-up window appeared and disappeared. I think it was one of yours.
I find it amusing considering the context of the story. I didn't ask for that window, so why pump it at me?