Internet Explorer 9 Includes a "Do Not Track" Feature to Foil Online Marketers

If you were on the fence about downloading the newly released Internet Explorer 9, Microsoft's (News - Alert) latest version of its popular browser that was widely released yesterday, this news may push you over the edge into doing it, particularly if online privacy is a concern for you. IE 9 will be the first major Web browser to include a do-not-track tool to help people keep their online habits from being monitored, reports the Wall Street Journal today.

Internet Explorer is the most widely used browser in the world, and IE9 has been well received thus far, with good reviews and a record-breaking number of downloads while the product was in beta testing.

By including the do-not-track feature in the latest version of Internet Explorer, Microsoft is leaving Google (News - Alert) and Apple as the odd companies out who have yet to declare their support for a do-no-track system in their products. In January, Mozilla revealed that it would include a do-not-track feature in an upcoming version of its Firefox browser.

Microsoft and Mozilla (News - Alert) are thought to be looking to please Internet users who are becoming increasingly concerned by the amount of information marketers collect about them while they browse. Concern has gone all the way up to the federal level: a new “do-not-track system,” similar to the popular “do not call” telemarketing legislation of the 1990s, was officially proposed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC (News - Alert)) in December (see TMCnet news video about the proposal) It highlights the pressure the industry faces to provide people with a way to control how they are tracked and targeted online, as lawmakers and regulators threaten to rein in the practice.

IE9 also includes a feature called “tracking protection lists,” which allow surfers to prevent specific Web-tracking companies from snooping or collecting information on their browsing habits.

Microsoft had intended to include “do not track” controls in its last version of Internet Explorer – IE8, released two years ago – but caved in to intense pressure from online marketing companies, reported the Wall Street Journal.