Sharon Conheady is the director of First Defence Information Security where she specialises in social engineering, security awareness and penetration testing. Recently, ultrasonic cross-device tracking (uXDT) has emerged, based on embedding tracking identifiers into ultrasonic sounds and detecting them with a microphone on a user’s smartphone. [24], Additionally, privacy concerns surround cookies, flash cookies, and web beacons on websites today. Ultrasonic cross-device tracking sounds like technology that only exists in science fiction movies. Moreover, malicious actors may use variants of the technology to deanonymize anonymity network users. [4] Consequently, while the user is logged in, the company can keep a running history of what sites the user has been to and which ads the user interacted with between computers and mobile devices. Cross-Device Tracking Ultrasonic signals also enable an adversary to derive what mobile devices belong to the same individual. Thus your smartphone knows to display a pop up for that chocolate bar you have been trying so very hard to resist. [20] This form of capitalism seeks to commodify private human experience to create behavioral futures markets, in which behavior is predicted and behavioral data is harvested from the user. Sharon is a founding member of the Risk Avengers collaborating with industry peers in the fraud prevention and cyber security arenas. [2] These profiles inform and predict the type of advertisements the user receives. Ultrasonic cross-device tracking (uXDT) is here. She has a background in professional services and has delivered security testing and training both locally and internationally. Compared to probabilistic tracking through browser fingerprinting, the use of audio beacons is a more accurate way to track users across devices. Dadurch erkennen Sie genauer, welche Stationen Ihre Nutzer bis zu einer Konversion durchlaufen. [23] In the tool role, the self-tracking device functions as a mechanism to help the user in some capacity, often to achieve personal health goals. Advertising platforms use uXDT technology to track what ads people are watching and how effective they are – do people buy products after seeing a certain ad, how long do they watch the ad for? [2] Given the variety of sound waves that exist, humans can only hear frequencies that are within a certain range––generally from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. [17] The person's willingness to share their personal information online is validated by the audience, since the audience holds the user accountable and the user vicariously experiences pleasure through the audience. Ultrasonic Cross-Device Tracking is a new technology that some marketers and advertising companies are currently using to track users across multiple devices and have access to more information than ever before for ad targeting. [20] Thus, since cross-device tracking seeks to create a profile of a user across multiple devices, big tech companies, such as Google, could use this behavioral data to make predictions about the user's future behavior without the user's awareness. The ads come on, you pick up your phone, and the pop up for the same scrumptious chocolate bar that was just being advertised on your TV appears on your smartphone. Cross-Device Tracking. [20] Zuboff suggests that this new era of surveillance capitalism eclipses Bentham's panopticon, becoming far more encroaching and invasive as, unlike a prison, there is no escape, and the thoughts, feelings, and actions of users are immediately extracted to be commodified and resold. There are four primary privacy concerns associated with this new form of tracking: From cookies to ultrasonic trackers, some argue that invasive forms of surveillance underscore how users are trapped in a digital panopticon, similar to the concept envisioned by Jeremy Bentham: a prison in which the prisoners were able to be seen at all times by guards but were unable to detect when, or even if, they were being watched at all, creating a sense of paranoia that drove prisoners to carefully police their own behavior. How Can Users Protect Their Devices from Ultrasonic Cross-Device Tracking? [16], Some scholars have even contended that in an age of increased surveillance, users now participate online through the active generation and curation of online images––a form of control. [28] Near-field communication enables devices to transmit data to each other with a certain range. Compared to probabilistic tracking through browser fingerprinting, the use of audio beacons is a more accurate way to track users across devices. Blackhat Europe, London, UK, 3–4 November 2016. It uses inaudible, high-frequency sounds to link your devices − TVs, phones, tablets and PCs − so that advertisers can better track you. Other scholars have defined a similarly extractive and destructive phenomenon called data capitalism. [5] However, advertisers were still limited in that only one device was able to be tracked and associated with a user.[5]. [20], Scholars are beginning to discuss the possibility of quantifying the monetary value of users' personal data. [25] Data capitalism is an economic system enabling the redistribution of power towards those who have access to the information––namely, big corporations. [6] However, as users began utilizing multiple devices––up to around five––advertisers became confused as to how to track, manage, and consolidate this data across multiple devices as the cookie-based model suggested that each device––whether a phone, computer, or tablet––was a different person. It creates better advertising profiles and more targeted advertising opportunities. Ultrasonic cross-device tracking (uXDT) is here. No matter if you are using Android or iOS you can configure your device so that an app is not allowed to use your device’s mic. However, this doesn’t work with sounds played via Flash and doesn’t protect Tor users as it is based on Firefox. [2] In addition, cross-device tracking may presage the future of the Internet of things (IoT), in which all types of devices––such as offices, cars, and homes––are seamlessly interconnected via the internet. Your phone is LISTENING to you - ultrasonic cross-device tracking … Ultrasonic Cross Device Tracking Nu har en ny teknik utvecklats där en sådan spårning sker med hjälp av ultraljuds ljud och kallas - Ultrasonic Cross Device Tracking . [25] There are three fundamental theories of how large companies engage users in virtual communities, reflecting the power of data capitalism on users today: Scholars are convinced the current notice-and-consent model for privacy policies is fundamentally flawed because it assumes users intuitively understand all of the facts in a privacy policy, which is often not the case. She is also a member of the Regional Review Board for Blackhat Europe. [19] Thus, scholars are arguing for users' to have increased awareness and transparency into this process so that users can become empowered and informed consumers of data. "any device microphone—like those accessed by an app on a … [11] The FTC warned these developers that they may be violating the FTC Act if they state or imply that their apps are not tracking television viewing habits when they in fact are. Mit dem Cross-Device-Tracking ist es wiederum möglich, das Nutzerverhalten über verschiedene Geräte hinweg zu analysieren.