Most websites collect more data than people realize.
Behind the pages you visit, invisible technologies track how you move, click, and interact online. These tools are called website trackers. You rarely see them. You often do not understand them. And in many cases, you never knowingly agree to them.
So what are trackers on websites, and why do they matter?
This article explains how website trackers work, why companies use them, where they come from, and why they raise real privacy concerns.
What Are Website Trackers?
Website trackers are technologies embedded in websites that monitor user behavior.
They record how visitors interact with a site and often send that information to third parties. Some trackers operate only within a single site. Others follow users across many websites to build long term behavioral profiles.
Most tracking occurs silently and in the background, making it very difficult for consumers to fully understand and even more difficult to manage.
What Website Trackers Collect
Trackers don’t simply keep a record of visits to a website. Instead, trackers compile data to create a pattern of behavior.
Over time, trackers gather data such as:
- Pages you view and how long you stay
- What you click or scroll past
- Where you came from before visiting
- Your device type and operating system
- Browser settings and language
- Approximate location based on IP address
When combined, the data above forms a detailed picture of your online behavior.
Common Types of Website Trackers
Although trackers serve various functions, they don’t all work in the same way. Some trackers support fundamental site functions. Other trackers are used primarily to monitor user behavior across multiple websites.
Cookies
Cookies are small pieces of code stored on your computer.
First-party cookies are used to store login credentials, preferences, or items in a shopping cart.
External companies create third-party cookies and can track users across multiple websites. They are most often used for advertising purposes and to provide targeted advertising.
Pixel Tags and Tracking Pixels
Pixel tags are essentially invisible images that are embedded into web pages or emails.
Loading a pixel tag notifies the organization when its associated content is viewed. This could indicate that a page or email was opened, what device was used to open the page/email, and occasionally, where the user was geographically located.
Unlike cookies, pixels run quietly and automatically and most users are completely unaware that pixels exist.
Device Fingerprinting
Device fingerprinting doesn’t rely on cookies to uniquely identify your device.
Instead, it creates a unique identifier for your device using technical characteristics of your browser and/or device. Examples of these technical characteristics include:
- Browser Version
- Screen Resolution
- Installed Fonts
- Operating System
- Time Zone
When combined, these characteristics can uniquely identify a device.
Fingerprinting can identify users even after cookies have expired.
Social Media Trackers
Many websites embed social media tracking tools. These tools allow social networks to track your browsing behavior beyond their own app(s). If you’re logged in to a social network, the activity will be tied to your profile.
The tracking data that is generated by social media trackers is used for ad targeting and content recommendations.
Email Tracking Beacons
Most marketing emails contain tracking pixels. When an email recipient opens the email, the pixel loads and reports back to the sender. The report includes:
- That email was opened.
- When the email was opened.
- What device was used to open the email.
Like other tracking mechanisms, the process of opening the email is done quietly and automatically.
Why Companies Use Website Trackers
Companies use website tracking technology to generate revenue and provide value to their business.
From a company’s perspective, tracking allows them to:
- Improve their marketing efforts.
- Enhance Content & Functionality
- Targeted Advertising
Targeted Advertising
One of the primary uses of tracking is advertising.
Trackers allow advertisers to:
- Show ads based on past browsing behavior
- Retarget users who viewed specific products
- Measure which ads lead to conversions
This is why ads often seem to follow you across the internet.
Website Analytics
Tracking tools give website owners insight into user behavior.
By analyzing data collected from tracking tools, website owners can determine which pages of their site are performing best, where users drop off during navigation, and how users navigate their site.
This data informs website design, content development and technical improvement decisions.
Personalization
Some trackers support personalization efforts. For example, a website may customize content based on user location, preferences or previous interactions.
However, like tracking for advertising, this too requires the collection of user data.
Core Site Functionality
While not always invasive, not all tracking is for the sake of advertising or data collection. Some trackers are necessary for core site features such as:
- Saving Preferences
- Maintaining Login Credentials
- Preventing Fraudulent Activity
These types of trackers generally rely on first party cookies and remain within the confines of a single website.
Where Website Trackers Come From
Most trackers are embedded onto a website by third-party organizations.
Trackers most commonly originate from:
- Ad Networks
- Analytics Providers
- Social Media Platforms
- Marketing Tools
A single website can load dozens of external tracking scripts simultaneously. Each script can send data to a variety of different companies, many of which are unknown to the user.
Privacy Concerns Around Website Trackers
The concern is not that tracking exists. It is how extensive and opaque it has become.
Cross Site Tracking
Many trackers continue to track users across multiple, unrelated websites.
This enables companies to build comprehensive profiles of user behavior over time. In most cases, users are not aware of these profiles and how they are utilized.
Lack of Transparency
Most users don’t know who collects their data, how long it’s stored, or where it’s sent.
Even when websites publish privacy policies, it is rarely clear how trackers fit into the larger context of user data collection.
Data Aggregation and Profiling
When data is combined across platforms and devices, it becomes powerful.
This power extends to influencing ads, search results, pricing and content recommendations. Inaccurate data can result in inaccurate assumptions and damage to a person’s or organization’s reputation.
Performance and Security Risks
Some tracking scripts affect performance.
Poorly designed trackers can slow websites, drain battery life, or create security vulnerabilities. In rare cases, trackers have been used for malicious purposes such as cryptomining.
How Trackers Affect Your Online Reputation
Tracking does more than shape ads.
Over time, tracking data can create associations between information and a person’s name or brand. These associations can affect what content is recommended, promoted, or hidden.
For individuals and businesses, such monitoring has real reputational consequences.
Reducing Exposure to Website Trackers
While it is impossible to remove tracking entirely, there are methods available to limit it.
Steps you can take include:
- Use Browsers Designed to Protect Your Privacy
- Restrict Third-Party Cookies
- Carefully Review Consent Requests
- Be Selective About Browser Extensions
By taking simple measures, you can greatly decrease your exposure to tracking.
Why This Matters Now
Tracking technology continues to evolve.
With the rise of cookie-blocking and other privacy regulations, new tracking technologies have emerged. One such example is device fingerprinting.
At the same time, data is increasingly used in automated decision-making systems that affect the visibility, accessibility and opportunities of individuals.
Take Control of Your Digital Footprint
Web tracking is becoming an integral component of modern browsing. However, awareness provides you with options. The more informed you are regarding how tracking works, the better equipped you’ll be to protect your digital footprint and maintain your online privacy.
Need Help Managing Your Online Privacy?
If tracking, data collection or unwanted visibility are impacting your ability to live your personal/professional life online, expert guidance can help.
NewReputation provides individuals and organizations with the means to minimize unwanted exposure, protect their digital identity and maintain control over how they are perceived online.
If you would rather have clarity around your online presence, get in touch today and begin creating a more secure and private online footprint.
The NewReputation Help Center discusses brand reputation, online PR, search engine marketing, content marketing, and much more.