activate.platform.californiatimes.com: How California Times Tracks Your Reading

California Times’ tracker, activate.platform.californiatimes.com, monitors your activity on their news platforms. It gathers data to profile your habits for ads and subscriptions, eroding your privacy. Here’s the full story and how to fight back.

What Is activate.platform.californiatimes.com?

This domain supports tracking for California Times, including the Los Angeles Times. It collects user data for ad and content personalization. As Privacy Auditors, we’re concerned about its invasive scope.

Data It Collects

When you visit their platforms, it captures:

• IP Address: Identifies your location.
• Browsing Behavior: Tracks content viewed.
• Click Interactions: Logs content or ad clicks.
• User ID: Connects actions if subscribed.
• Device Data: Records browser and OS.
• Session ID: Links activity in one visit.
• Cookie IDs: Follows you across sessions.
• Page URLs: Notes specific pages.
• Referrer URLs: Tracks origin site.
• Timestamps: Logs precise times.

This creates a detailed profile of your reading behavior.

Who Gets Your Data?

California Times shares your data with:

• Internal Team: For content and ad personalization.
• Third-Party Ad Network: For targeted ads.
• Analytics Provider: For behavior analysis.
• Government Authority: If legally required.

How to Protect Yourself

Take action with these steps:

• Block Trackers: Stop activate.platform.californiatimes.com with Privacy Auditor.
• Use a VPN: Hide your IP with Mullvad.
• Privacy Browser: Opt for Firefox or Tor.
• Cookie Management: Clear or block cookies.

Use these together for better privacy.

Sources

• LA Times Privacy Policy: https://www.latimes.com/privacy-policy

This is a legal disclaimer. All information is provided for educational purposes only.