Verizon subscribers can now opt out of ‘supercookies’

Verizon customers can now opt out of having a unique identifier placed on their phones that critics have labelled a ‘supercookie’ because it’s almost impossible to remove.

Verizon said in January that it would allow subscribers to opt out of the tracking mechanism, but it didn’t say when. On Tuesday, it said the identifier won’t be inserted for customers who opt out of its mobile advertising program.

The move hasn’t satisfied privacy advocates, who say many customers won’t be aware that they need to opt out of the program. The identifier should be “opt in” instead, those advocates say.

“This is an improvement, but it doesn’t do nearly enough,” said Jacob Hoffman-Andrews, a senior staff technologist with Electronic Frontier Foundation.

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