There is a hue and cry being raised across the web about Yahoo’s use of web beacons, which some liken to “super cookies”, and which allow the tracker to track a user’s movements not only within their own website, but even when the user has moved on to other, unaffiliated websites.

The use of web beacons is nothing new, but what is new is the growing awareness of their use, along with a generally increasing concern on the part of the web-surfing public about how their personal information can be used, compromised, and misused.

A case in point is the following message that has recently been circulating around the Internet about Yahoo’s use of web beacons: “Yahoo tracks all of its users everywhere on the web and the way to opt-out is detailed below. If you have a Yahoo e-mail account or belong to one of Yahoo’s many Yahoo groups, this probably applies to you. Yahoo has probably been tracking everything you do online. Follow the instructions precisely to opt out of this. Notice the important part at the very end.” It then goes on to say that “Yahoo is now using something called ‘Web Beacons’ to track Yahoo Group users around the net and see what you’re doing and where you are going similar to cookies. Yahoo is recording every website and every group you visit.”

Now, it may be a bit alarmist to say that Yahoo tracks “all of its users everywhere on the web,” or that “Yahoo is recording every website and every group you visit,” but it is undeniable that they are using web beacons, and using them to track people’s movements both on and off Yahoo’s own websites. Of course, they aren’t the first company to do it, and they won’t be the last, but they are the one which is presently in the spotlight.

Tripping through Yahoo’s privacy statement, available at…

[Yahoo Using Web Beacons to Track Users Across the Web, Continued]