June 19, 2004

2:00 AM

Can someone at Web Site B tell that I came to them from Web Site A? When I leave, can they tell that I went to Web Site C? (Assume I get to each of these sites by typing the URL's directly into my browser's address bar or by clicking on a bookmark. )
posted by Jaybo to (9 comments total)

Can someone at Web Site B tell that I came to them from Web Site A?
Yes, if you click a link on site A to site B (a HTTP_REFERER is sent along saying where you came from, unless you block it). No, if we follow your assumption that you type in or used your bookmarks.

When I leave, can they tell that I went to Web Site C?
Nope.
posted by malphigian at 2:07 AM on June 19, 2004

PS. If you're carrying around any ad tracking company cookies (doubleclick, etc) or, even worse, spyware, you path from site to site may well be available to those companies, and they could share it or sell it with the sites you went to. In both cases, it's probably not data actually tied to you personally, FWIW.
posted by malphigian at 2:09 AM on June 19, 2004

(if unblocked), can't site B just use some javascript to lookup the history property for the window even when the address is typed in or accessed through a bookmark?
posted by juv3nal at 2:13 AM on June 19, 2004

Nope, browser history has been 'fixed' to not work that way for a long time.
posted by mmoncur at 2:53 AM on June 19, 2004

When I leave, can [website B] tell that I went to Web Site C?
This is possible if Web Site B places an intermediary page between it and site C. Basically, they have a link to site C which actually goes to another page on site B which records which link was clicked on, before forwarding the individual to Site C. It will appear to the user that they have gone straight to site C.
posted by chill at 6:53 AM on June 19, 2004

(but for what chill says to happen, you have to click on a link at B. it won't detect what you type into the address bar, or what you select from bookmarks).
posted by andrew cooke at 9:09 AM on June 19, 2004

There are simple exploits allowing B to see that you went on to C.
posted by nakedcodemonkey at 11:16 AM on June 19, 2004

But, in that exploit, B would also have to link to C, right? If not, can someone explain it to me in clear language.
posted by vacapinta at 9:50 PM on June 19, 2004

There was a problem with some web browser (I believe IE, but I'm not sure) maybe five years ago that would send the previous page's URL as the HTTP_REFERRER field even if no link was followed (e.g., typing in a new URL in the address bar). I found out about this when a friend visited my webpage directly after visiting christianlesbians.com. He was rather embarrassed.

It wasn't the right behavior, of course, and it's no doubt been fixed since then.
posted by whatnotever at 2:10 PM on June 20, 2004