YAHOO is tracking what you are doing and every site you visit

[mshasta]

If you belong to ANY Yahoo Groups - be aware that Yahoo is now using
"Web Beacons" to track every Yahoo Group user. It's similar to
cookies, but allows Yahoo to record every website and every group you
visit, even when you're not connected to Yahoo.

Look at their updated privacy statement at
http://privacy.yahoo.com/privacy.

About half-way down the page, in the section on cookies, you will see
a link that says WEB BEACONS.

Click on the phrase "Web Beacons." On the page that opens, find a
paragraph entitled "Outside the Yahoo Network."

In that section find a little "Click Here to Opt Out" link that will
let you "opt-out" of their snooping. Be careful! NOT to click on the
next button shown. It is an "Opt Back In" button that, if clicked,
will UNDO the opt-out.

Note that Yahoo's invasion of your privacy - and your ability to
opt-out of it - is not user-specific. It is MACHINE specific. That
means you will have to opt-out on every computer (and browser) you use.

Please forward this to your other groups. You might complain, too, but
I'm not sure if anyone is listening..

Related article:

Yahoo Web Beacons Igniting Controversy Yahoo's current privacy policy
is causing consternation among some users who object to their use of
so-called 'web beacons'. Known in most circles as web bugs, these
invisible images are embedded in websites and email and used to track
your surfing - and even tell whether you've opened a particular email.
http://antivirus.about.com/od/spywareandadware/a/yahoobugs.htm

[Roland99]

1. Thank you!

[JDPriestly]

2. Thanks. Nominated. This is important.

[juliana24]

3. You dont get something for nothing. Free E-Mail comes with a price.

I didnt know about this, but I had suspected something, considering the unwanted e-mail I was recieving on Y-mail.

I will be deleting my Yahoo account right now. Bye-bye, Yahoo :)

Thanks for the info, Mshasta!

[coldiggs]

4. still they should make that clear before you sign up

[complain jane]

8. Try again. I PAY for my Yahoo email account, and didn't realize this was

one of the "features" I apparently pay for.

[JDPriestly]

5. I'm a lawyer. Some of my communications are confidential.

My research is protected in California by the work product doctrine which is set forth in a statute in the state code. No one has the right to read my e-mails or follow me as I search the internet. No one has the right to sell that information -- perhaps to someone I am opposing in litigation. Apparently Yahoo! and the likes don't think about the fact that the internet may be used to transmit confidential information or to perform confidential research.

[rfkrfk]

29. there is nothing 'private' about e-mail

lots of people can look at it.

your isp,
numerous other communication companies, and/or individuals with access

you don't know how e-mail gets to its destination...
if the e-mail goes. by microwave radio,
people could listen to that

use encryption, PGP, or something else...
otherwise, you should assume e-mail is the same
as posting to a public bulletin board

if you practice criminal law, the state is reading your e-mail,
but they won't tell you that

edit, adding,

if you send an e-mail accross town,
you have no idea how many different countries
the message goes thru

[Occulus]

40. There is nothing "private" about snail mail

I sort mail for the USPS. Your mail can be opened by homeland security for "homeland security" purposes or by a postal worker if the address is illegible; it can also be opened by postal inspectors.

Your letters to Grandma go through a great many hands, and is "unprotected" at all points in the process.

If you want truly secure mail, you can use registered mail, but again, that's still subject to being opened if/when the need arises.

If you want true security, use encryption on the letters enclosed in the envelope.

If you send your mail across town, you have no idea of the number of hands it goes through.

The lack of ethics on the part of A does not depend upon a lack of security on the part of B.

[Llewlladdwr]

49. Wait a minute....

You're using an unsecured computer terminal to transmit confidential data across public networks and you think Yahoo is the problem? I wonder if one of your clients could sue for your negligent handling of the information concerning their cases?

[OldLeftieLawyer]

6. Excellent!

Thanks VERY much.

But, does anyone really put their true information in those questions Yahoo asks when you sign up for an email account? (I don't belong to any groups)

Anyway, thanks again ............

[Catherine Vincent]

7. I just opted out.

Thanks!

[complain jane]

11. I just answered my own question.

never mind...

[XOKCowboy]

9. Thanks....

I'll pass this around to my friends on Yahoo. I like they terminology they use. Here is the section on "Outside the Yahoo Network". (Bold emphasis mine)

Outside the Yahoo! Network

* Yahoo! uses web beacons to conduct research on behalf of certain partners on their web sites and also for auditing purposes.
* Information recorded through these web beacons is used to report aggregate information about Yahoo! users to our partners. This aggregate information may include demographic and usage information. No personally identifiable information about you is shared with partners from this research.
* When conducting research Yahoo!'s practice is to require our partners to disclose the presence of these web beacons on their pages in their privacy policies and state what choices are available to users regarding the collection and use of this information. You may choose to opt-out of Yahoo! using this information for this research. Please click here to opt-out.

Note: This opt-out applies to a specific browser rather than a specific user. Therefore you will have to opt-out separately from each computer or browser that you use.

I'm about done with anything Yahoo. My old Yahoo email account gets almost 50 spam emails a day. Now I know why. Time to close it down and start using Gmail and give up Yahoo Messenger. Just not worth it.

[buddysmellgood]

10. Wow. Thank you. We are all so screwed. I never would have found that. Big

Brother is watching.

[FreedomAngel82]

12. They've been doing this for a good while

I heard about this on another yahoogroup and quickly changed my settings.

[wtmusic]

13. Not true.

It is impossible for Yahoo! to track every site you visit.

Impossible.

What they can do is use web beacons to track when you've visited a partner's website (the partner's website updates Yahoo!'s cookie) or when you actually click on an image in an email (the browser is directed to a Yahoo! URL before being redirected to the intended site).

A couple of weeks ago there was a story that the NSA could do the same thing, and it was quickly debunked. If the NSA can't do it, Yahoo! sure can't.

[mshasta]

20. It is true. I have debated on this in the past.

I used to work for a big chip maker company and we had a roundtable discussion on if we should track not only what page the consumers were visiting on our web page but also use a tracker to track what pages they visited once they left our page and for how long. (yes we were trying to keep stats on everypage that consumer visited). That was in 2003 before I got layed off. So yes its true. It can be done. Never say never with technology.

[wtmusic]

23. The only possible way

would be to build a app which would the customer would have to download and open, which would install itself on their computer (a virus). This is a practice which (everyone should know by now) is not recommended under any circumstances. And it can't happen from a JPEG image either.

Browser security was considered very carefully from the start to prevent hackers from invading your personal PC space. Has a hacker ever crashed your computer from a file that you did not download and open? Of course not.

It's also impossible to reliably track how "long" someone visits your page, although many stats packages claim the ability to do just that. Perhaps someone in your roundtable was misinformed, but again--it's impossible.

If you'd like to debate the finer points of this I'd be happy to.

[adarling]

14. how do you get rid of it?

[Mutley]

34. Here is the direct opt-out link...

http://antivirus.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=antivirus&zu=http%3A%2F%2Fpclick.yahoo.com%2Fp%3Foptout

[Peggy Day]

15. Now I'm really on their list

I don't really trust anyone anymore.

[kliljedahl]

16. Kick & nominate

Thanks for this.



Keith’s Barbeque Central

[Greyhound]

17. Thanks, I've been wondering about that one.

[gordontron]

18. blimey

just opted out, hmm some of my groups I would rather be confidential

[LibertyorDeath]

19. Thank You!

& a BIG FUCK YOU to Yahoo

[GregW]

21. Oh puhlease ... all you nervous Nancys now go and run for your lives

Web Beacons are used ALL OVER the internet, they are embedded in email, they are embedded in web pages. They can only tell what pages you access CONTAINING THE BEACON. If you go to xyz.com and it has a beacon, then access www.dump43.org - there is no way for the beacon on the first site from knowing you where you went and what you did on the second.

Try here for more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_beacon

[wtmusic]

24. thank you

the sky, contrary to popular belief, is not falling.

[niyad]

25. this, of course, is the same group that shut down a chinese dissident

because they didn't want to lose their hold in china, right? and we all know that wikipedia is 100% reliable.

[wtmusic]

35. no -- just saying hysteria is not helpful

and this is 100% unwarranted.

[alittlelark]

28. Baaaa

I feel better now.

[Ani Yun Wiya]

36. There is a simple program...

That will tell where you came from AND where you go to from ANY website that employs it.

It is called A Webvisit.

It tracks things like screen resolution, OS, browser and version and other details.

This program has been around for quite a while and I am sure there are even better ones out there.

I wonder if Yahoo still uses illegal cookies????

[wtmusic]

38. And that's all it can do

Any website can determine the last website you came from (NOT where you go to). The browser and platform you're using (sometimes), and a limited amount of information about your server.

That's as far as it goes. Period.

[Eric J in MN]

22. Thanks, I opted out (nt)

nt

[TreeMonkey]

26. Why?

Are they using this to compete with GOOGLE? Arent they working for China? Uh Oh...I mean shi-na...

[alittlelark]

27. That's why I don't YAHOO!!

Why would I do that?

[Jo March]

30. This is what happens if you have their toolbar as well

When I was a manager of an IT Help Desk, we wouldn't allow anyone to download the Yahoo toolbar because they'd track your movements.

Also, when you'd try to remove the toolbar, you'd have to go into the registry to get all of the Yahoo cooties off of your computer.

Yahoo sucks. I am trying to steer as clear away from them as possible.

[OregonBlue]

31. Lots of other free email services out there. I went to their security

site and let them know that I will no longer use Yahoo for anything!! Suggest everyone do the same.

[CrispyQ]

32. Thank you for this alert.

I'm considering canceling my membership in the Yahoo groups, but I will miss Freecycle!


If you go online & never visit Yahoo or Yahoo groups, does it still track you?

[PleadTheFirst]

33. Thanks for the heads up - nominated!

[Dinger]

37. Thanks, K & N! nm

[ovidsen]

39. Kicked and nominated

Why is this news not surprising?

And why do I wonder if "opting out" REALLY opts you out??

Just call me a suspicious cynic.

[Burried News]

41. Account deactivated. Thanks for the Info. nt

[burythehatchet]

42. thanks, done.

[BattyDem]

43. ZoneAlarmPro disables web beacons (bugs)

:bounce:

[mom cat]

44. Send this around to everyone you know.

[Warren DeMontague]

45. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Oh Nooooooooooo! Tech-mology!

Read up on what these things actually do, elsewhere in this thread. If you understand how the internet works, you'll understand that these deals aren't really that different from most of what is happening on the internet most of the time. Any time you look at any image you're downloading it, and as such leaving a record on the server that hosts it. I'm not saying these web beacons are a wonderful thing, but they aren't some spooky magical thing that is watching you, following what you do, tracking you on the internet from site to site.

That's Bush and the NSA, that are doing that.

[fishwax]

46. If you regularly delete your cookies, does this still work?

If I understand it right, the web beacon is not a cookie, but is used to read/access cookies.

Either way, thanks for the heads up. I plan to opt out.

[oscarguy]

47. YAHOO Helped jail Chinese journalist for 10 YEARS

This story has been reported at many sites and newspapers. It is available at < C/NETnews.com.com >. No apologies from Yahoo, just doing their job etc. ... Help with link would be appreciated

[banana republican]

48. What Platforms do they infect

windoz
Linux
Unix
Macs

Please advise. I deal with confidential information.

thanks