What is “Do Not Track”?

Do Not Track (DNT) is a privacy preference that users can set in their web browsers.

The United States Federal Trade Commission has endorsed DNT as a simple way for users to inform integrated web services which offer content across the Internet (such as buttons, widgets, and other embedded features) that they do not want certain information about their webpage visits collected across websites when they have not interacted with that service's content on the page.

The DNT browser setting is now supported by recent versions of major browsers, including Firefox 5+, Internet Explorer 9+, and Safari 5.1+.  If you are using Chrome 17.0 or higher, there is a third-party extension that enables DNT.

Twitter supports “Do Not Track”

We are committed to providing you with meaningful choices about the information we collect to improve your Twitter experience. We support DNT for our test of the tailored suggestions feature.  Here’s how:

When you turn on DNT in your browser, we stop collecting the information that allows us to tailor Twitter based on your recent visits to websites that have integrated our buttons or widgets. Specifically, we remove from your browser the unique cookie that links your browser to visits to websites in the Twitter ecosystem. We then cannot provide tailored suggestions for you.  For more on how this works, see our privacy policy.  

Further, we respect DNT preferences by turning off tailored suggestions by default in the following circumstances:

• For new users signing up for Twitter with DNT already enabled, the checkbox on the signup page that says Tailor Twitter based on my recent website visits will be unchecked.
• If you had already joined Twitter and visited Twitter.com with DNT enabled in the days before tailored suggestions, the Personalization checkbox in your account settings will be unchecked at launch.

If you want to learn more about the benefits of tailored suggestions, learn more or preview your suggestions with DNT turned off. If you’ve had DNT enabled recently, it may take a day or two to get your suggestions.

How do I enable “Do Not Track”?

Below are a few examples of where to find the DNT settings in major web browsers. These implementations are evolving, and you should check the help pages of your browser for more details.

If you are using Firefox 5:

1. Open the Preferences menu and click Privacy.
2. Check the box for Tell web sites I do not want to be tracked.

If you are using Internet Explorer 9:

1. Visit this Do Not Track test page for information about installing on Internet Explorer 9, and scroll to the bottom to find the link to install. 
2. When the dialog window shown below pops up, click the Add List button to add an empty Tracking Protection List.
3. For more details see this help page from Microsoft.

If you are using Safari 5.1:

1. In Safari preferences, click Advanced.
2. Next, check the Show Develop menu in menu bar checkbox (screenshot 1, below).
3. Close the preferences window, and under the new Develop menu, select Send Do Not Track HTTP Header (screenshot 2).

If you are using Chrome 17.0 or higher, there is a third-party extension that enables DNT:

1. Open Chrome, click Window in the top navigation, and select Extensions. 
2. Click the link at the bottom that says Get more extensions.
3. Search for “Do Not Track” from Jonathan Mayer.  
4. To add "Do Not Track” to your Chrome browser, just click the button  Add To Chrome and click Add again when you see the disclaimer. 
5. Go back to your Extensions and make sure it has been successfully added and enabled.