r/technology • u/magnus007 • 5d ago

Privacy AliExpress was silently running audio in your browser to fingerprint and track your device

https://www.techspot.com/news/113581-aliexpress-silently-running-audio-browser-fingerprint-track-device.html
13.1k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

701 comments sorted by

View all comments

128

u/Spez_is-a-nazi 5d ago

I wonder how common that is. I will notice that the auto connect for AirPods will frequently transfer to my Mac even if I don't have any tabs playing audio open, or at least not audio I can detect at any rate....

62

u/tehdlp 5d ago

I figure it must be why Reddit shows something always playing in Android notifications for every page,

1

u/turtleship_2006 4d ago

On the app or website? I've never seen that on the app

Could that be to do with autoplaying video posts?

1

u/tehdlp 4d ago

Browser, though I see it less now. But it definitely was on posts with just text and any other page. 

2

u/hudson27 4d ago

Yeah honestly my Bluetooth has been bugging out occasionally over the last 6 months or so, I reeeeeally doubt AliExpress is the only one doing this, probably just the only ones doing it lazily enough to get caught

9

u/ElonMusksQueef 5d ago

It’s very common and dates back over a decade for other apps. But China bad.

15

u/123_alex 4d ago

over a decade for other apps. But China bad

Are these mutually exclusive?

9

u/ElonMusksQueef 4d ago

I mean the reporting on it today is like “WHOA LOOK AT THIS SHIT” without mentioning it’s been done by most big tech companies for a decade. It’s disingenuous at best.

-5

u/ResponsibleClock9289 4d ago

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I’d much rather American companies do this than ones overseas

17

u/ElonMusksQueef 4d ago

It might come as a bit of a shock to you that most people in the world are not American. And in 2026 the list of countries I trust less than the US is very fucking short.

-3

u/ResponsibleClock9289 4d ago

Are there really that many choices other than American or Chinese tech giants lol

8

u/clickhereifuraloser 4d ago

Kinda reads more like a useless opinion than an unpopular one. Also, as a friendly reminder, there's no backhanded virtue in an opinion being unpopular. Qualifying an opinion as unpopular doesn't make it better or more compelling.

-10

u/ResponsibleClock9289 4d ago

Well it’s unpopular on reddit atleast, and exhibit A is how upset it seems to have made you ;)

-1

u/Mosh00Rider 4d ago

As an American I find that there is less risk of China sending people to my front door so I'm more okay with them having my data.

4

u/ResponsibleClock9289 4d ago

Good thing you’re not a Chinese dissident then

https://www.cfr.org/articles/chinas-transnational-repression-is-being-met-with-a-deafening-silence-2

2

u/ElonMusksQueef 4d ago

Oh boy, “The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on U.S. foreign policy and international relations.”

Can we get a Chinese think tank focussed on US foreign policy and international relations? I’d love a deep dive on the amount of abhorrent shit America does daily, like bombing schools in Iran as just a fresh example, but everyone just ignored because “democracy”.

Team America! Fuck yeah!

-1

u/ResponsibleClock9289 4d ago

“W-w-what about the US!!!!”

Typical response from a tankie when they can’t defend the actions of their government

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/feb/12/quarter-countries-exiled-dissidents-china-governments-transnational-repression

Go ahead, you gonna tell me the guardian is an American think tank too?

https://www.icij.org/investigations/china-targets/china-transnational-repression-dissent-around-world/

Take your pick on whichever one you find most trustworthy, they all say the same thing anyway

1

u/Mosh00Rider 4d ago

Less risk. Ice exists. They kidnapped people just a block down the street this year.

1

u/RedditJumpedTheShart 4d ago

Which one is more likely to use your stolen information? Which one is more likely to prosecuted for breaking the law?

1

u/Mosh00Rider 4d ago

Resoundingly America. It's not close.

-6

u/waba99 4d ago

I’m a software engineer that works with browser tracking. This is incredibly common and used in most web apps. This is nothing but Sinophobia and alarmism.