Today, websites operate within a pervasive and opaque tracking ecosystem, where user data is collected, analyzed, and monetized, often hidden from users. This compromises privacy for corporate gain. Many tracking behaviors blend with legitimate browser functions or are obscured by providers, making reliable detection difficult. Regulators struggle to distinguish lawful data collection from covert surveillance, and the rapid development of tracking technologies makes enforcement difficult. The extent of GDPR compliance by websites remains unclear, creating an incentive for organizations to prioritize economic gains over robust privacy practices. Without reliable tracker detection and measurement, verifying compliance is crucial to prevent further erosion of user privacy and unaccountable surveillance.
The Project Group aims to develop a browser-integrated approach to detect GDPR compliance related to data collection and consent. This system will automatically measure whether websites' data practices align with legal obligations. A tailored webcrawling tool will evaluate a broad set of websites, enabling real-world compliance analysis.
- verantwortliche Lehrperson: Lucas Davi
- verantwortliche Lehrperson: Martin Fritz Jakob Herrmann
- verantwortliche Lehrperson: Tristan Löding