Just for Kicks

Ars Technica reports that Google wants DNS queries to show the IP addresses of the clients requesting the domains. When Google first revealed that it was providing free DNS servers for anyone who wants to use it, I was already suspicious. They can already track most of your movements through the Internet even when we’re not at Google. With the DNS service provided free of charge, they know even more about us.

With this latest request, the other shoe drops. With information like that, Google can know not only where those who are using their DNS service is going, but also where those who are using other DNS services are going.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has a project that shows that even if you disable cookies in your web browser, you can be tracked and distinguished from all the other people visiting the site. It does this by using the information provided by the web browser as you surf. You won’t believe the things that your browser discloses about your unique system fingerprint. See it for yourself at Panopticlick.

Essentially, the more rare your browser is, the more easily tracked you are. So if you are using a less-used browser like Safari, Chrome, and Opera, the likelihood of sites tracking you is even greater. Even if you disable JavaScript and all plugins, the sites can trace your movements, since you’ll be in an even greater minority of users who disable JavaScript and plugins. And if you enable JavaScript and plugins, they can track you just as well, since JavaScript and Flash disclose even more secrets about your system, like the unique combination of fonts you have installed on your system. As a result, you’re damned if you do, and damned if you don’t.

The company with the most information about your movement is of course Google. It sees you at the search engine. Even when you go to a private site, it knows your movements since so many sites use Google Analytics and Google AdSense. And if you use their Google DNS, they have even more information on you. And don’t forget the ReCAPTCHA too that has been acquired by Google. There is no escape.