Mozilla Firefox add-on lets users see how websites are tracking them

TORONTO – Web users eager to know if their online activity is being recorded can now track which companies or apps are tracking them.

Mozilla, the open-source software company behind the popular web browser Firefox, has created an add-on that users can download to see who is watching. Dubbed ‘Lightbeam,’ the add-on gives users a visualization of their browsing history while analyzing what applications are tracking the user.

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When a user visits a website – referred to as the ‘first party’ – Lightbeam creates a real-time visualization of all of the third-party sites that are active on that website. The more sites the user visits, the more the graph grows to show what third-party sites have tracked the user.

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Lightbeam is the second phase of efforts by Mozilla to create a browsing visualization tool.

Mozilla’s first foray into the idea started with an experimental add-on called Collusion, created as a personal project by Mozilla software developer Atul Varma as an “experimental add-on to visualize browsing behavior and data collection on the Web.”

Gary Kovacs, former Mozilla CEO, discussed the project during a TED Talk in 2012.

“When I know that data is being shared, and I am asked explicitly for my consent, I want some sites to understand my habits. It helps them to suggest books for me to read, or movies for my family to watch, or friends for us to connect with,” said Kovacs.

“But when I don’t know and I haven’t been asked that’s when the problem arises.”

Mozilla’s Lightbeam tool has been released at a time where many web users are becoming weary of behavioral tracking.

It was revealed this week that Canadian telecom company Bell will soon start tracking its customers’ web history in order to improve network performance, create marketing reports and sell targeted ads on mobile devices.

Though customers are able to opt out of the program, many Canadians have voiced concerns about the data collection. A spokesman for federal privacy commissioner Jennifer Stoddart also confirmed that an investigation will be launched into the program.

Through Lightbeam, Mozilla is creating a “big-picture view” of how behavioural tracking works by using crowd-sourced data collected through the add-on. But, in keeping with the theme of privacy, users can choose to disable the feature and keep their data private.

Firefox users can download the Lightbeam add-on through Mozilla’s website.