Despite the best efforts of Internet porn users to mask their web history, it may be possible for hackers to trace and expose every porn site visited.
A new report by Motherboard’s Brian Merchant reveals that most major porn sites have contracts with third-party software companies that let them monitor users and improve the performance of their websites.
But with almost no laws restricting what those third party companies can do with that information, it is highly likely that hackers can steal the sort of data that porn users would find very embarrassing if released.
Merchant talked to one of the nation’s largest Internet porn purveyors, but they insisted that it is impossible for hackers to discover their visitors’ private surfing history.
The company said that their “raw server logs contain only the IP and the user agent for a very limited time, never a browser footprint.” Further, the company said that to save all their customers’ data would require so much storage space that they would never be able to afford the expense. And that isn’t to even mention that this storage space would continue growing with the customer base.
But others disagree. That data is all out there floating around with few safeguards keeping it safe, they say, and even efforts by users at home to safeguard their surf history isn’t much help.
Because of the data mining software installed in nearly every website out there, even clearing a cache, or deleting cookies and surfing histories won’t stop tracking. Neither does using IP masking software, Merchant said.
With the use of Internet porn increasing — an estimated 30 million Americans now view porn on the Internet — the threat of hackers exposing porn users’ history is growing apace.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter: @warnerthuston. Email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.
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