Reviews for Ghostery – Privacy Ad Blocker
Ghostery – Privacy Ad Blocker by Ghostery
Review by Firefox user 12793893
Rated 1 out of 5
by Firefox user 12793893, 9 years agoOr simply install Disconnect. A company who's business model is you, the user, is not a company users should trust.
Some say that Ghostery, Inc. plays a dual role in the online advertising industry. Ghostery blocks sites from gathering personal information. But it does have an opt-in feature GhostRank that can be checked to "support" them. GhostRank takes note of ads encountered and blocked, and sends that information back to advertisers so they can better formulate their ads to avoid being blocked.[9] Though Ghostery claims that the data are anonymized, patterns of web page visits cannot truly be anonymized.[10] Thus not everyone sees Evidon's business model as conflict-free. "Evidon has a financial incentive to encourage the program's adoption and discourage alternatives like Do Not Track and cookie blocking as well as to maintain positive relationships with intrusive advertising companies," says Jonathan Mayer, a Stanford grad student and privacy advocate.[11]Some say that Ghostery, Inc. plays a dual role in the online advertising industry. Ghostery blocks sites from gathering personal information. But it does have an opt-in feature GhostRank that can be checked to "support" them. GhostRank takes note of ads encountered and blocked, and sends that information back to advertisers so they can better formulate their ads to avoid being blocked.[9] Though Ghostery claims that the data are anonymized, patterns of web page visits cannot truly be anonymized.[10] Thus not everyone sees Evidon's business model as conflict-free. "Evidon has a financial incentive to encourage the program's adoption and discourage alternatives like Do Not Track and cookie blocking as well as to maintain positive relationships with intrusive advertising companies," says Jonathan Mayer, a Stanford grad student and privacy advocate.[11]
Some say that Ghostery, Inc. plays a dual role in the online advertising industry. Ghostery blocks sites from gathering personal information. But it does have an opt-in feature GhostRank that can be checked to "support" them. GhostRank takes note of ads encountered and blocked, and sends that information back to advertisers so they can better formulate their ads to avoid being blocked.[9] Though Ghostery claims that the data are anonymized, patterns of web page visits cannot truly be anonymized.[10] Thus not everyone sees Evidon's business model as conflict-free. "Evidon has a financial incentive to encourage the program's adoption and discourage alternatives like Do Not Track and cookie blocking as well as to maintain positive relationships with intrusive advertising companies," says Jonathan Mayer, a Stanford grad student and privacy advocate.[11]Some say that Ghostery, Inc. plays a dual role in the online advertising industry. Ghostery blocks sites from gathering personal information. But it does have an opt-in feature GhostRank that can be checked to "support" them. GhostRank takes note of ads encountered and blocked, and sends that information back to advertisers so they can better formulate their ads to avoid being blocked.[9] Though Ghostery claims that the data are anonymized, patterns of web page visits cannot truly be anonymized.[10] Thus not everyone sees Evidon's business model as conflict-free. "Evidon has a financial incentive to encourage the program's adoption and discourage alternatives like Do Not Track and cookie blocking as well as to maintain positive relationships with intrusive advertising companies," says Jonathan Mayer, a Stanford grad student and privacy advocate.[11]
Developer response
posted 9 years agoHere is the response that we provided in the same article from which that information comes from:
"The data we collect in GhostRank doesn't contain any information about the actual ads that were seen by panel members. Rather, we simply report on the technologies that are used to deliver those ads, the performance characteristics of the URLs those technologies were seen on, and if the user blocked that particular technology company. GhostRank can't see the actual ads or anything about the criteria that were used to target them."
But, if you are at all uncomfortable with sharing any data after what you read, feel free to go into your Ghostery settings, click Support Ghostery, and make sure both boxes are left unchecked. That will ensure you never send any data of any kind our way and you can continue to use the extension without ever sharing anything.
"The data we collect in GhostRank doesn't contain any information about the actual ads that were seen by panel members. Rather, we simply report on the technologies that are used to deliver those ads, the performance characteristics of the URLs those technologies were seen on, and if the user blocked that particular technology company. GhostRank can't see the actual ads or anything about the criteria that were used to target them."
But, if you are at all uncomfortable with sharing any data after what you read, feel free to go into your Ghostery settings, click Support Ghostery, and make sure both boxes are left unchecked. That will ensure you never send any data of any kind our way and you can continue to use the extension without ever sharing anything.
4,761 reviews
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 17951329, 4 days agoI absolutely love Ghostery :) With it, I can use internet without constant, disturbing ads and pop-ups. Just as it should be!! Works every time, on every site. The Best! :) Thank you!!
- Rated 5 out of 5by Antoon, 4 days agoSince I had to quit brave, because of reasons, I now use forefox with this extension. Lots of fun! Does what it promisses and more. Give it a try and you'll fall in love. Cheers
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 12487246, 4 days agoI've used Ghostery for many years and currently use it on my main w/s, a W10 x64 device. It does exactly what it says on the tin.
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 18667114, 4 days agoGhostery has been one of my longtime extensions and has been really reliable. No updates have ever interrupted my browsing experience and it's super easy to customize the level of privacy I want depending on which page I visit. Sets the bar for other security extensions out there!
- Rated 5 out of 5by JB80, 4 days agoHi there! I'm using Ghostery for years already and appreciate it a lot. It's very easy to use. Just install it and it works. Only once a had an ad coming through, I contacted Ghostery, they were very reactive and the problem was solved. Many thanks and happy Thanksgiving.
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 16908988, 4 days agoOnce it was installed, it did exactly what it said it would blocking ads and stopping trackers, and the auto reject of non essential cookies saves so much time too. When you click on the extension it shows all the options you have active
- Rated 5 out of 5by Ken S, 4 days agoI have used Ghostery for years now, it's always worked well with most every web page I have visited. I always feel confident when on Firefox with Ghostery running since I almost forget that it's working. Clean pages, never slows down the browser at all. Definitely a must add!
- Rated 5 out of 5by Samiros, 4 days agoОтличное расширение, пользуюсь уже очень давно. Всем рекомендую.
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 16142665, 4 days ago
- Rated 5 out of 5by Raphael, 4 days agoI have been using Ghostery for years on various browsers and have thoroughly enjoyed its security and newsletters.
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 19195241, 4 days ago
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 14835803, 4 days agoVery happy with Ghostery, blocks the ads and trackers without interfering, and very easy to pause if the site is not playing nicely.
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 18217571, 4 days agoHave been using a long time and Tried & True #1 Recommended to friends to make them safe in the Spider filled web out there!
- Rated 5 out of 5by MoxieTom, 4 days agoI can search, surf, and stream without worry. I work from home and am on the computer all day. With Ghostery I don't have to worry about cookies, pop-ups, or having to deal with ads to watch or listen to media.
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 19583743, 4 days agoHi all, I have used Ghostery on all of my browsers since its inception. I will never use a browser without it as it continues to amaze me in how it is able to help protect me as I surf the net. If I can offer any advice, get this product now!
- Rated 5 out of 5by Chris’s, 4 days agoI have a huge amount of time for this add-on across multiple browsers and multiple devices. On the (very) rare occasion there are conflicts leading to page loading errors it’s simple to decide how to work around as safely as possible. Very nice.
- Rated 5 out of 5by Firefox user 10175490, 4 days agoBeing my #1 ads block and tracker extension long time now, still proves why! It's on my standard extensions list to install on every browser for my customers! Keep up with the good work!
- Rated 5 out of 5by petyus, 4 days agoSuper cool and usefull extensin, I am using like since it appeared ;)
- Rated 5 out of 5by Cosmo, 9 days agoSimple, easy to use, doesn't stop you from doing stuff. Definitely recommend :D