Porn site users under scrutiny from Google, Facebook and Oracle
Posted: Tue Jan 07, 2025 8:48 am
Tech giants never miss a beat of Internet users' activities, even when they are indulging in the pleasures (incognito mode) of online pornography . This is at least the conclusion of a recent study by Elena Maris (Microsoft Research), Timothy Libert (Carnegie Mellon University) and Jennifer Henrichsen (University of Pennsylvania) that was recently published in the United States.
According to this report, which monitored at least 22,484 pornography websites , companies based in Silicon Valley do not miss a beat of the activities of those who delve into the depths of online porn (even if they browse these types of websites in incognito mode).
According to the research, Google has tracking tools on 74% of the pornographic websites bahamas phone number analysed. Meanwhile, the software company Oracle and the social network Facebook (both of which prohibit any form of pornographic content on their respective platforms) track 24% and 10% of such websites respectively.
The authors of the study admit that the final destination of the personal browsing data tracked by Google, Facebook and Oracle on pornographic sites is an unknown (almost inevitably dark in nature). In addition, it should be noted that only 17% of the porn sites evaluated in the report are equipped with encryption systems , which makes it extremely easy for hackers to get their hands on the personal data of their users.
In a statement to The New York Times , which reported on the investigation, a Google spokeswoman stressed that the Mountain View company “does not authorize Google Ads on websites with adult content” and that it “expressly prohibits personalized advertising and advertising profiles that are based on users’ sexual interests and online activities directly related to such interests.”
Facebook , for its part, offers a very similar explanation to that put forward by Google through a spokesperson . The world's largest social network emphasizes that its guidelines explicitly ban pornographic websites that wish to use Facebook's tracking tools for advertising purposes.
As for Oracle , the company has not yet commented on the controversial results of the report.
According to this report, which monitored at least 22,484 pornography websites , companies based in Silicon Valley do not miss a beat of the activities of those who delve into the depths of online porn (even if they browse these types of websites in incognito mode).
According to the research, Google has tracking tools on 74% of the pornographic websites bahamas phone number analysed. Meanwhile, the software company Oracle and the social network Facebook (both of which prohibit any form of pornographic content on their respective platforms) track 24% and 10% of such websites respectively.
The authors of the study admit that the final destination of the personal browsing data tracked by Google, Facebook and Oracle on pornographic sites is an unknown (almost inevitably dark in nature). In addition, it should be noted that only 17% of the porn sites evaluated in the report are equipped with encryption systems , which makes it extremely easy for hackers to get their hands on the personal data of their users.
In a statement to The New York Times , which reported on the investigation, a Google spokeswoman stressed that the Mountain View company “does not authorize Google Ads on websites with adult content” and that it “expressly prohibits personalized advertising and advertising profiles that are based on users’ sexual interests and online activities directly related to such interests.”
Facebook , for its part, offers a very similar explanation to that put forward by Google through a spokesperson . The world's largest social network emphasizes that its guidelines explicitly ban pornographic websites that wish to use Facebook's tracking tools for advertising purposes.
As for Oracle , the company has not yet commented on the controversial results of the report.