How long do ISPs store your browsing history and what is stored?
- Thread starter oxf77
- Start date
Man of Honour
I'd be interested to know too. I am guessing it's like most businesses. We have to keep records for 6 years but no idea if this applies to an ISP
They have an obligation to be able to do so and retain information for 12 months but that doesn't necessarily mean they are logging anyone unless ordered to.
An example overview:
www.ispreview.co.uk
I wouldn't be surprised if many ISPs are retaining short term logs these days of domain lookups and traffic patterns feeding into a set of longer term generic statistics. I doubt many/any are doing more extensive logging except where ordered to due to the sheer resources/logistics and storage requirements.
An example overview:
Government Moves Forward with UK ISP Internet Snooping System
The UK Home Office and the National Crime Agency (NCA) appear to be making progress on the development of a new internet snooping system and database, which cou
www.ispreview.co.uk
I wouldn't be surprised if many ISPs are retaining short term logs these days of domain lookups and traffic patterns feeding into a set of longer term generic statistics. I doubt many/any are doing more extensive logging except where ordered to due to the sheer resources/logistics and storage requirements.
Soldato
I think it's a disgrace the way the government ignores our privacy. You can bet that the new laws don't apply to them, either.
But, yes, I am pretty sure that some companies use the information. Sky, for example.
But, yes, I am pretty sure that some companies use the information. Sky, for example.
I was surprised how long games companies keep logs for.
Asked for a full copy of everything related to an account and got back chat logs and transactions from over a decade ago.
Perhaps you can ask for exactly the same from your ISP
Asked for a full copy of everything related to an account and got back chat logs and transactions from over a decade ago.
Perhaps you can ask for exactly the same from your ISP
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Caporegime
Always had my suspicions of the big name VPN's who offer super cheap subscriptions on the back of cashback deals that are sometimes even offered at over 100% of the cost, their running costs must be subsidised somewhere - hence the suspicion.
There's a difference between keeping logs and forwarding logs to a third party.. not saying they all do this but it can definitely happen.
I suspect not all broadband sessions are logged unless anything suspicious is noticed due to the load overhead on devices.
I don't really think deep down it's all that nefarious but good to keep a suspicious open mind.
There are no guarantees. But some companies are independently audited. I use Proton that is based outside of the five eyes countries and is periodically audited for logs. There is still a degree of trust though so I wouldn't go with one of those cheaper big names.
Mind you, I use a lot of Google services including search and email so all that is pretty irrelevant compared to the information I give away there. I've started to use Proton Mail for some stuff because of this. Proton VPN has an adshield and tracker detector and it's shocking how much spying it blocks when I turn it on.
Stop leaving location on & signing into gmail to use Google search
News: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-09-28/google-user-data-is-police-s-top-shortcut-for-solving-crimesCitation for wrongful arrest: https://ww...
youtu.be
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If you want to go deeper into the rabbithole, you need to consider the 9 and 14 eyes alliances as well
Yep. Imagine routing all your traffic to some random private 3rd party who is not governed or regulated. Seems odd.
Soldato
If you want to go deeper into the rabbithole, you need to consider the 9 and 14 eyes alliances as well
And now add in selling that data for AI companies to mine to feed to their models. This used to be data they really didn't want to keep at all as it was just a cost and the only "users" of the data were law enforcement.
Scott McNealy said it ~25 years ago: "Privacy is dead, get over it".
The thing is, the whole concept of the internet was inherently "sans" privacy... we are all nodes connected to each other...
Soldato
True, I suppose. But, I can't quite bring myself to join the "publish my entire life on the internet" crowd.
For me, I try to deny the companies as much information as possible because I find their targetted advertising really choice-limiting and annoying. Oh, and then there's the fairy-cake porn.
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Yes, agree. Proton is in Switzerland which is outside of fourteen eyes.If you want to go deeper into the rabbithole, you need to consider the 9 and 14 eyes alliances as well
2274 posts in under a year begs to differ.
* Your hedge cutter fly tips
* Your brother is dead and you want your money
* Your sisters husband doesnt pay any bills
* You have a cat
Stalk much?
Soldato
Nah, see, you are completely wrong there. I have three cats. OH DAMMIT! My VPN wasn't on. Now everyone knows.
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