We fell short of our Fall Fundraiser goal of 2,500 donations. Help us catch up ⏩ Give Now
Codebreaker

Companies are not following their own Do-Not-Track policies

John Moe Jul 13, 2011

That’s according to a recent study from Stanford’s Center for Internet and Society. While Congress wrestles with online privacy legislation, the status quo is that companies self-regulate how they track users online. Several months ago, some of these self-regulating groups announced they’d use and Advertising Option Icon to let users know whether the site they’re on is tracking them or not. Stanford’s report finds that 12.5% of the companies in the study are leaving their tracking cookies on even after users try to turn them off. A violation of their policy. While the House holds a hearing Thursday about online privacy, it’s unclear whether any lawmaking will actually get done.

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.