SnowHaze includes the most extensive toolbox against Browser Fingerprinting on iOS. If you are a tech expert, you would most probably already know how you can check these claims. But what if you aren’t? What is Fingerprinting and what is the simplest way to find out if your private browser does what it claims? Here is a quick guide.
Broadly speaking, browser fingerprinting is the detection of browser and operating system features that differ between users for the purpose of covertly identifying users and tracking them across the web. Although fingerprinting attacks will always be possible, it is worthwhile for SnowHaze to make these attacks as slow/costly/difficult as possible.
Why does Panopticlick or some other service say that I’m fingerprintable?
- These services report your uniqueness relative to their user base. As you can imagine, only a small fraction of internet users test their browser set up. Among these is relatively large number Tor users and relatively low number of people using a standard setup. Thus, Panopticlick may find a standard configuration that blends in with the mass more fingerprintable, than the Tor browser, just because their user base is not representative.
- These services do furthermore not take account for the fact that spoofed (randomized) fingerprint values are an effective way to prevent real-world fingerprinting. For instance, if SnowHaze randomized canvas fingerprints on every page request, then it would be impossible for a site to track a specific SnowHaze user using canvas fingerprinting. However, because the randomized values would be unique, Panopticlick would report SnowHaze as being highly canvas-fingerprintable.
How can I reliably test if my browser is fingerprintable?
Tabs in SnowHaze’s free browser are sandboxed and thus behave as independent browsers. To test if SnowHaze is fingerprintable, you can open the test site, like Panopticlick, in multiple tabs, and on multiple devices using identical SnowHaze settings and compare the fingerprint values. You are least vulnerable to fingerprinting if the following holds for a given fingerprint value, like your canvas fingerprint:
Your browser is not fingerprintable if the fingerprint value is either different in every tab OR if it is identical across multiple devices.
If the fingerprint value is different for every tab, the spoofing of this fingerprint value is working as intended and although the testing site thinks it can be used to identify you, you are safe. Values that cannot or should not be spoofed should be identical across devices to prevent fingerprinting. If this is fulfilled, then you are protected.
Before shipping a new SnowHaze Version, we make sure that it is adequately protected against browser fingerprinting. For this reason, we test it on all of the following sites.
Fingerprinting test sites:
- https://amiunique.org/
- https://browserleaks.com/
- https://panopticlick.eff.org
- http://audiofingerprint.openwpm.com/
- http://ubercookie.robinlinus.com
- http://uniquemachine.org/
- http://www.radicalresearch.co.uk/lab/hstssupercookies
- https://ipleak.net/
- https://robinlinus.github.io/socialmedia-leak/
- http://static.audienceinsights.net/
Try out SnowHaze for free today. If you are still unsure, drop us an email, contact us on Wire or on our Twitter, we will be happy to advise you.
