Can Ghostery addon be trusted?

[eradic8]

I just found out that Ghostery had been sold to a company called Better Advertising, and that the addon collects data from users. I thought this addon was supposed to protect a users privacy. Can this plugin be trusted now that it appears to be owned by a company thats interest is in advertising, and why would the author of this plugin choose to sell his creation to a company whose interest seems to be in opposition to that of which the plugin was originally created for. I am going to uninstall the plugin anyway as I have had some strange things happening with my computer recently, and I cant help wondering whether it has anything to do with this plugin. Has anyone else on this forum got this plugin installed, and if so have you had any problems with it? Also does anyone know of an alternative plugin that can block trackers?

[Alan Baxter]

Also does anyone know of an alternative plugin that can block trackers?

I use Adblock Plus with the Fanboy Adblock and Stats/Tracking filter lists.

[eradic8]

Also does anyone know of an alternative plugin that can block trackers?

I use Adblock Plus with the Fanboy Adblock and Stats/Tracking filter lists.

Thanks Alan I already use Adblock plus as well with Rick752's Easylist. Not sure whether this is best for me or not.

[Alan Baxter]

EasyList is a good, well-maintained list. If you haven't already, subscribe to EasyPrivacy too. That, combined with EasyList, may block all the tracking that Ghostery could. http://easylist.adblockplus.org/

[GµårÐïåñ]

Ghostery is indeed a company operated by an advertising agency, it has always been that way, it is not recent that it has been sold. In fact since the beginning the addon offered users a way to earn money by sending aggregate data to them. Supposedly they do it on an opt-in manner but frankly I would not be surprised if it does somehow check in with some http check to leave some data behind to be aggregated. I find it a useless addon and its blocking feature is the result of much of the web content breaking. You would be better off using NoScript + RequestPolicy and then top it off by using Adblock Plus to fine tune what gets through, which is admittedly not much if any at all. The lists are often moot but they are helpful to have. Just know that "SOME" of the items on the list, ALSO break content and functionality and when possible I let them know the workaround but sometimes its all or nothing and you can just add an exception for the site that breaks. good luck.

[eradic8]

Thanks for your replys

[GµårÐïåñ]

Thanks for your replys

You are welcome. You can take a look at the reply we FINALLY got from their side by a lady named Rose who tried to play damage control. You can view the whole discussion here: http://getsatisfaction.com/ghostery/top ... ly_1935687