The Electronic Freedom Foundation has released a white paper that reveals most Web browsers leave enough information about their configurations on Web servers that they are identifiable.
The EFF put up a web site, took data from 470,161 informed participants and found that among browsers with Flash or Java activated, 94.2 percent were identifiable (�unique� in their words.)
�By observing returning visitors, we estimate how rapidly browser fingerprints might change over time. In our sample, fingerprints changed quite rapidly, but even a simple heuristic was usually able to guess when a fingerprint was an �upgraded" version of a previously observed browser's fingerprint, with 99.1% of guesses correct and a false positive rate of only 0.86%.�
And, if that isn�t scary enough, they said that those using anti-fingerprinting privacy technology will still be identifiable until a lot of people start using the same countermeasures.
White paper here: �How Unique Is Your Web Browser?�
Tom Kelchner
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