recirculation.spot.im: How Spot.IM Tracks Your Content Preferences

Spot.IM’s recirculation.spot.im domain monitors your clicks on recommended articles, building a profile of your interests for publishers and advertisers. This intrusive tracking chips away at your privacy. Here’s what it does and how to stop it.

What Is recirculation.spot.im?

Part of OpenWeb (formerly Spot.IM), this domain drives content recirculation by suggesting articles while tracking your engagement. It logs every click to tailor future content and ads, sacrificing your privacy in the process. Privacy Auditors aim to uncover these hidden trackers.

Data It Collects

When you click on recirculated content, it grabs:

• IP Address: Ties your actions to a specific location.
• Click Behavior: Records clicks on recommended articles or links.
• Content Preferences: Tracks topics or categories you view.
• Session Data: Measures time spent on suggested content.
• Device Signature: Logs browser and OS, like ‘Firefox on macOS’.
• Cookie IDs: Connects actions across visits with unique tags.
• Page URL: Captures the page hosting the content.
• Timestamps: Notes precise timing of interactions.

This data reveals your reading patterns, making you a target for personalized ads.

Who Gets Your Data?

Spot.IM shares your information with:

• Publisher: Sites using Spot.IM for content recirculation.
• Ad Network: Companies targeting users based on interests.
• Analytics Vendor: Firms analyzing behavior for content trends.
• Cloud Provider: Services storing your engagement data.

How to Protect Yourself

Privacy Auditors Institute fights for your digital privacy. Block recirculation.spot.im with these measures:

• Equip Tracker Blockers: Privacy Auditor’s paid service stops recirculation scripts. The free version spots trackers.
• Conceal with a VPN: Hide your IP with a VPN like Mullvad to dodge location tracking.
• Use Privacy Browsers: Opt for Firefox with strict protection or Tor for anonymity.
• Disable JavaScript: Halt trackers by turning off JavaScript, though sites may not work properly.
• Delete Cookies: Clear cookies often to break cross-session tracking.

Combine these strategies for solid defense against content trackers.

Sources

Information comes from:

• OpenWeb Privacy Policy: https://www.openweb.com/privacy-policy
• OpenWeb Terms of Service: https://www.openweb.com/terms-of-service

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