Ted Kritsonis has more than two decades as a journalist covering consumer technology, cybersecurity and digital privacy. His work has appeared in such outlets as PCMag, TechRadar and MobileSyrup. He’s also the former editor-in-chief of Macworld Canada.
Whether you realize it or not, every move you make online creates an invisible mark, or a “digital footprint.”
It can be active or passive, meaning you either knowingly agreed to share your data or you have no clue that you’ve already done so. Every website you browse, for example, logs the Internet Protocol (IP) address of the device you’re using.
A website may ask you to accept cookies, which are small text files your browser stores to remember certain things about you. This helps next time you visit the site, as it will remember your login information or your personal preferences. It also allows companies to use your data.
Then there are third-party cookies, which use your digital footprint to serve you targeted ads based on your browsing habits. That’s why after visiting a certain ecommerce site, that brand and others like it tend to appear in ads on nearly every site you visit after you leave.
Social-media platforms will track you in a similar manner. If you stay logged in to your Facebook or Instagram accounts, Meta will have access to your browsing history and where you make your online purchases. Almost magically, it seems, you’ll begin noticing targeted ads or even promotions and coupons tailored to your shopping habits.
Seeing ads that may be useful and getting the odd discount may not seem like such a bad thing. You may even appreciate it. On its face, it’s not necessarily a negative outcome. But your digital footprint comes with vulnerabilities, with identity theft one of the biggest concerns, whether through phishing attempts or a data breach. Hackers can use data found in your digital footprint to commit crimes or fraud in your name.
Anonymity is your secret weapon to protect yourself from identity theft and to keep your personal data under wraps. Here are four simple yet powerful strategies to boost your anonymity and shrink your digital footprint, so you can navigate the web with confidence and security.
- Reject all cookies, or only leave functional cookies active, when you land on a website and it asks your preferences.
- Use your browser’s incognito or private browsing mode. It will automatically delete your history and cookies (though your Internet Service Provider, or ISP, will have access to your history).
- Use a browser that anonymizes traffic, such as DuckDuckGo, which ensures you don’t leave a trail. While not as robust as Google, it won’t track your history or associate your IP address with your browsing habits.
- Virtual Private Networks, better known as VPNs, often get attention for circumventing geo-blocked content (think in terms of watching streaming content meant for a different region). But their primary purpose is to encrypt internet connections. They will route your activity through their servers to better shield digital footprints. These services are also helpful when using public WiFi networks, which are less secure and fraught with risk.
Glossary of terms
Knowing is half the battle. Here are some common definitions of terms related to your online safety and security.
Active digital footprint: When users have purposely shared information online, be it posting something on social media or commenting in a forum, for example. Filling out online forms or accepting all website cookies also contribute to active digital footprints.
Passive digital footprint: When users are not aware they’re sharing information, including how often they visit a site, their location (country) and the IP addresses of their devices. Social-media platforms also collect likes, shares and comments through algorithms to target content and ads.
Cookies: Files that allow websites and web servers to remember a device and online activity. Not all cookies are nefarious but you may want to decline third-party ones.
Third-party cookies: These files come from websites other than the one you’re visiting. They are used to serve targeted ads to you regardless of which sites you visit.
IP address: This stands for Internet Protocol, a numeric identifier assigned to every device that connects and communicates on the internet.
VPN: This stands for Virtual Private Network, a program that encrypts your traffic and routes it through the provider’s servers to anonymize and disguise your activity online.
Phishing: A cyber attack in which scammers trick people with malicious links or attachments that appear legitimate in order to steal sensitive personal information.