New Version of Safari to Offer Do-Not-Track Feature
The newest version of Apple's Safari will be joining Internet Explorer and Firefox in providing a feature that allows you to block online marketing companies from displaying targeted ads in your browser.
Online ad companies and websites use software snippets called cookies that are stored in your browser to display targeted ads. The do-not-track feature automatically sends messages to those websites and online-advertising networks requesting that your movements around the Web not be tracked.
According to a report from Business Insider, "The evidence comes from a test version of Safari. It's expected to be released this summer with Mac OS X Lion, Apple's newest operating system."
While hailed by many as a positive step in protecting user privacy, the do-not-track feature is only effective if advertisers agree not to track that user. At the moment, neither advertisers nor websites are legally required to honor the wishes of users using do-not-track features in browsers.
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