IE9's Do Not Track features could become Web standard

[NewsBot]

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C,) the standards body responsible for HTML5, accepted and published Microsoft's member submission for standardized privacy features on Thursday.

Last year, the Federal Trade Commission endorsed a framework for consumer privacy which suggested a persistent browser setting to protect users from services that collect and harvest browser data without users knowing about it.

Subsequently, Microsoft, Mozilla, and Google all responded to the proposal, saying they planned to add "do not track" functionality to their respective browsers. Microsoft was the first out of the gate with the feature active in Internet Explorer 9, and it submitted its technologies for user privacy to the W3C for standardization.

The W3C said Microsoft's submission was "both timely and well-aligned with the consortium's objectives and priorities," given the interest in privacy expressed by the FTC, EU, and public at large.

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[Eldmannen]

So the browser will say "please do not track me" to the websites?

I think websites won't give a s***.

Jerks are not likely to respect it.

[0_0]

In the U.S. we have / had a 'Do Not Call' list. The list (if you added your phone number) was supposed to prevent unwanted calls from coming in to your home - it was ignored and the government did very little if anything to those who continued to call unsolicited.

I figure 'Do Not Track Me' will work and be adhered to about the same - Not At All, not as long as Google remains the standard. Data Mining is the future (present), we have become an ad-driven society. I believe a more honest description might be - a marketing scheme encompassing a mixture of 'profiling', data 'dredging' (snooping), mixed with 'behavior analysis' all designed to corral us and feed us what they (anyone wanting to make a buck or get a point across) think we need.

The internet allows us to connect with everything we're interested in - sports, sex, cars, technology, politics, religion, anti-whatever, pro-whatever, and the browser (and ISP) keeps record of our habits (interests) - this information is worth a lot, and not simply monetarily.

Eventually there wont be a place you can go, even the toilet, where your privacy and the joys of silence (even visually) wont be over-run with someone or something trying to get your attention.

The first obvious (and logical) mediums were magazines, radio, and television. Now we see sports figures (and stadiums) littered with ads. Then the internet, next...?

[James_A]

Why does this spin make it sound like Microsoft is the leader? They aren't/weren't.

Try this (corrective) news article by the EFF from back in January:- Mozilla Leads the Way on Do Not Track

Actually, I think NoScript was first. See Georgio Maone's blog entries:-

2010-12-28: X-Do-Not-Track support in NoScript

2011-01-24: X-Do-Not-Track and the X-Not-Invented-Here Syndrome

2011-01-28: X-Do-Not-Track? DNT, c’est plus facile…

Or you could start with the "parent" website, maintained by Stanford researchers Jonathan Mayer and Arvind Narayanan:

Do Not Track

As to whether it will do any good, well I agree with:

I think websites won't give a s***.

and also with:

I figure 'Do Not Track Me' will work and be adhered to about the same - Not At All, ...

and that's despite Associated Press already implementing it.

.