Avast and AVG Browser Extensions Spying On Chrome
Avast and AVG Browser Extensions Spying On Chrome and Firefox Users
If your Firefox or Chrome browser has any of the below-listed four extensions offered by Avast and its subsidiary AVG installed, you should disable or remove them as soon as possible.
Why? Because these four widely installed browser extensions have been caught collecting a lot more data on its millions of users than they are intended to, including your detailed browsing history.
What users' data is being sent to Avast?
"Tracking tab and window identifiers, as well as your actions, allows Avast to create a nearly precise reconstruction of your browsing behavior: how many tabs do you have open, what websites do you visit and when, how much time do you spend reading/watching the contents, what do you click there and when do you switch to another tab. All that is connected to a number of attributes allowing Avast to recognize you reliably, even a unique user identifier," Palant said.
If your Firefox or Chrome browser has any of the below-listed four extensions offered by Avast and its subsidiary AVG installed, you should disable or remove them as soon as possible.
- Avast Online Security
- AVG Online Security
- Avast SafePrice
- AVG SafePrice
Why? Because these four widely installed browser extensions have been caught collecting a lot more data on its millions of users than they are intended to, including your detailed browsing history.
What users' data is being sent to Avast?
- Full URL of the page you are on, including query part and anchor data,
- A unique user identifier (UID) generated by the extension for tracking,
- Page title,
- Referrer URL,
- How you landed on a page, e.g., by entering the address directly, using a bookmark or clicking a link,
- A value that tells whether you visited a page before,
- Your country code
- Browser name and its exact version number,
- Your operating system and its exact version number
"Tracking tab and window identifiers, as well as your actions, allows Avast to create a nearly precise reconstruction of your browsing behavior: how many tabs do you have open, what websites do you visit and when, how much time do you spend reading/watching the contents, what do you click there and when do you switch to another tab. All that is connected to a number of attributes allowing Avast to recognize you reliably, even a unique user identifier," Palant said.
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