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It has often been observed that a manual tester does not really know the direction he should take to start his career in automation testing. With many tools available today, getting distracted and unable to decide how to start learning test automation is obvious. In this blog, we shall see how to streamline things so that you can learn automation testing at ease and without any Stress.



It is evident that because of a lack of clarity on such things, you cannot take that first step towards learning test automation. If you are new to automation testing, you can relate to what I am saying here. But, if you already have some experience in automation testing, this would help your fellow aspiring testers who aim to make their career in automation testing, or you can refer them to this article so that it will be beneficial for them.



<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#Mandatory_Steps_to_Become_an_Automation_Tester">1 Mandatory Steps to Become an Automation Tester </a></li><li><a href="#Software_Testing_Concepts">2 Software Testing Concepts</a></li><li><a href="#Programming_Languages">3 Programming Languages</a></li><li><a href="#Automation_Tools">4 Automation Tools: </a></li><li><a href="#Web_Automation_Testing">5 Web Automation Testing:</a></li><li><a href="#Mobile_Automation_Testing">6 Mobile Automation Testing:</a></li><li><a href="#Performance_Testing">7 Performance Testing: </a></li><li><a href="#CICD_Pipeline">8 CI/CD Pipeline:</a></li><li><a href="#Approach_to_Learning_Automation_Testing">9 Approach to Learning Automation Testing:</a></li><li><a href="#Conclusion">10 Conclusion:</a></li></ul></div>
<h2 id="mandatory-steps-to-become-an-automation-tester">Mandatory Steps to Become an Automation Tester </h2>



To start learning automation testing, first, you must believe that you can do it. Nothing is impossible in this world if we are determined to do so. I know you won&#8217;t believe me. Keep reading, and you will see the answer. So, make up your mind before you continue reading the article.



Start your career in automation testing, and switch from a manual testing career to an automation testing profile by referring to this blog. 



In this article, you&#8217;ll learn the tips, techniques, and approaches to learning test automation. Based on my real-time experience working in Software Test Automation Industry, I will be jotting down all the points for you to take care of, which will help you make a start and make you confident.&nbsp;



Get your tester horse to work! Take up the challenge.



<h2 id="software-testing-concepts">Software Testing Concepts</h2>



Software Testing concepts are a MUST to know for any tester, whether you are a manual tester or an automation tester. It includes the below:



<ol><li>Manual Testing concepts&nbsp;</li><li>Agile methodology, Scrum framework (widely used and known)</li><li>Defect tracking tool</li><li>Test Management tool</li></ol>



<h2 id="programming-languages">Programming Languages</h2>



Being a&nbsp; tester, you must know at least one programming language. One such language is Java which is widely used worldwide. Learning the basics completes the first step.



If you know the basics of any programming language or if you have created a project in your college, you can prepare more on that specific language and get expertise. If you know Java already, it is suggested to learn another programming language which will act as a bonus for you.&nbsp;



Having said that, if you are new to the programming world, then you can choose Python as your choice as it’s easy to learn comparatively.&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-automation-tools">Automation Tools: </h2>



Now, you must consider which tool you should learn to start your automation testing journey.



When you want to learn automation testing, you can go to any specific area like web automation, mobile application, API, Cloud, Performance, etc. There are automation tools available for each particular type of testing.&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-web-automation-testing">Web Automation Testing:</h2>



For web automation testing, I can suggest going with Selenium or Cypress. Depending on your chosen programming language, you can pick up the tool. You can go with Selenium with Java or Selenium with Python etc. Similarly, you can decide on other combinations as per your learning pace.&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-mobile-automation-testing">Mobile Automation Testing:</h2>



If you are inclined toward Mobile automation, you can start learning the Appium tool. But, again, if you are serious about making a career in mobile automation, you must understand mobile application testing (manually) before moving to mobile automation testing.&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-performance-testing">Performance Testing: </h2>



For Performance testing, we have JMeter, Neoload, etc. In contrast, NeoLoad is a powerful load and performance testing software solution designed for web and mobile applications. Jmeter is used for application&#8217;s load or performance testing. It is used to identify the bottleneck in the performance and improve the user experience.&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-ci-cd-pipeline">CI/CD Pipeline:</h2>



To be good at automation testing, you must know what CI/CD is. What does it entail? The purpose and the requirement should be clear to you first before understanding the basics of these tools. We have Jenkins available with us for CI. You also need to know about Maven, Gradle, GitHub, Git, Docker, etc.



<h2 id="h-approach-to-learning-automation-testing">Approach to Learning Automation Testing:</h2>



Let me share my approach, which I implemented when learning automation testing.&nbsp;Please note that the below points are not in order, and try to follow them daily.&nbsp;



1. Be strongly determined that you want to learn it.



2. Dedicate 1–2 hrs. each day to learn it.



3. Start from the very basics of any tool because when your basics are strong, you can quickly learn all advanced concepts.



4. While learning some concepts, make notes and explore more learning materials on the <a href="https://www.studocu.com/in" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">StuDocu</a> platform parallelly irrespective of whether it is basic knowledge, a programming language, or any automation tool, for example, Selenium.



5. If you are not working, then you can&#8217;t complain about timings. Spend 2–4 hrs. daily to learn.



6. After you learn, do hands-on on your personal computer without looking into a solution. It&#8217;s okay to go slow but don&#8217;t cheat. Remember, you are learning for yourself, not for others.



7. Next day, when you start a new topic, practice and revise what you learned on day 1. Check your hands-on exercises.



8. Keep following the same routine until you feel confident about yourself or for a minimum 3–4 months (religiously study).



9. Be serious about it. Have a goal in life and achieve it. It&#8217;s your life. Design the way you want it to be.



<h2 id="h-conclusion">Conclusion:</h2>



You can save these tips and share them with your friends looking to make a career in automation testing or who want to be automation testers. This will serve as a guide to you and them too. Also, please do not forget to come back to this blog after 4-5 months when you are prepared to embark on a test automation journey, and leave a comment for me to share your experience of becoming an automation tester.&nbsp;



I would be happy to hear all your success stories. Good Luck!&nbsp;

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Software testing is the process of evaluating and confirming a software program to ensure it functions as intended. It is designed to ensure that a program works as intended and to discover flaws before it is used. There are two main methods for testing software,- Negative and Positive Testing.



In this article, we will clearly distinguish between these two tests with examples to help you write good test cases for your software programs.



<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#Difference_Between_Negative_and_Positive_Testing">1 Difference Between Negative and Positive Testing</a></li><li><a href="#Negative_vs_Positive_Testing_Examples_of_Test_Scenarios">2 Negative vs Positive Testing – Examples of Test Scenarios</a></li><li><a href="#Negative_vs_Positive_Testing">3 Negative vs Positive Testing</a></li><li><a href="#Positive_Testing_vs_Negative_Testing-_Similarities">4 Positive Testing vs Negative Testing- Similarities</a></li><li><a href="#Conclusion">5 Conclusion</a></li></ul></div>
<h2 id="difference-between-negative-and-positive-testing">Difference Between Negative and Positive Testing</h2>



Positive testing ensures that software performs as it is expected to. When writing test cases for positive testing, only legitimate (valid) inputs are provided as inputs.&nbsp;



In Negative testing, a software program is evaluated against false or incorrect data. This testing is also known as error path testing or failure.



<figure class="wp-block-table aligncenter"><table><tbody><tr><td>Read More on <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/negative-testing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Negative Testing</a></td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<h2 id="negative-vs-positive-testing-examples-of-test-scenarios">Negative vs Positive Testing – Examples of Test Scenarios</h2>



Let’s test a software program with a Password text box field allowing users to enter passwords between 8 and 15 alphanumeric characters.



See the table below for various<a href="https://testsigma.com/guides/test-scenario/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> test scenario</a> examples.



<figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Positive Test Scenarios</td><td>Negative Test Scenarios</td></tr><tr><td>The Password text box should allow 8 characters of input.</td><td>The Password text box should throw an error or should not be accepted when less than 8 characters are entered.</td></tr><tr><td>The Password text box should allow 15 characters of input.</td><td>The password text box should throw an error or should not be accepted when more than 15 characters are entered.</td></tr><tr><td>Any values between 8 and 15 characters long should be accepted by the Password text box.</td><td>The password text box should not accept special characters as input</td></tr><tr><td>It should accept any combination of letters and numbers in the Password text box.</td><td>The password text box should not accept a combination of numbers only or a combination of letters only.</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<h2 id="negative-vs-positive-testing">Negative vs Positive Testing</h2>



In this session, let us discuss some key differences. &nbsp;



<h2><img loading="lazy" alt="Positive and negative testing flow chart" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXceHutfkGRVX5e-DyT8loU34BcymsmcTD_wTDhzOD22h-eL_SaEJ5ZhX3kf255cdfgXrO10Yk_We0j2BnJ1BHs3qLdkQ9YMQH8Bta50HjF1oHvGeSzYW3xTgt5M3YPRcWpJabYnEEPYmdXx9-s0W9TEEQw2?key=EFDOdEb5zUls68Ysu_lSdQ" width="500" height="333"></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Positive Testing</td><td>Negative Testing</td></tr><tr><td>This testing examines a software program’s response with the help of a valid input data set.</td><td>This testing means checking the software program’s response using the invalid/incorrect input data set.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing is not a guarantee of high-quality software.</td><td>It ensures that the software product is of high quality.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing is executed quickly.</td><td>It takes more time to execute compared to positive testing.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing is used consistently to validate the set of test cases that are currently available.</td><td>It is used consistently to break the software program (product) with an unidentified set of test cases we will use.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing’s primary goal is to ensure that the <a href="https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/what-is-application-software/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">software application </a>consistently complies with the developer’s software requirements specifications (SRS)</td><td>This testing’s primary goal is to evaluate a software program’s consistency in the face of erroneous validation data sets.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing does not cover all possible scenarios.</td><td>It encompasses all possible scenarios.&nbsp;</td></tr><tr><td>It is a process where the program is validated against a reliable input data set.</td><td>It is a process where the program is validated against the invalid input data set.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing has less impact comparatively.</td><td>It is more crucial and significant than Positive testing.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing can be implemented on all kinds of applications.</td><td>It can also be performed on all kinds of applications.</td></tr><tr><td>Someone with less knowledge can carry out the positive testing.</td><td>Professional software testers mainly use this testing.</td></tr><tr><td>It makes sure that the software program meets the required standard.</td><td>It makes sure the software works even if it meets unexpected situations.</td></tr><tr><td>Positive testing is implemented only for the predicted conditions.</td><td>It ensures that the software works for conditions that are tough predict but can happen in real life.</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



These two tests are two opposing test methods—as the name suggests—but they are also very effective at producing high-quality and bug-free software in the end.



<h2 id="positive-testing-vs-negative-testing-similarities">Positive Testing vs Negative Testing- Similarities</h2>



Both are important parts of a whole software examination. Even though they have different priorities, both are similar in some major aspects and should be done together to make strong and easy-to-use software at the end.&nbsp;



Let&#8217;s take a look at these two testing techniques and see where they meet.



Commonalities:



Purpose: Both negative as well as positive testing share the same goal — to catch defects, ensuring better quality of the software system.



Life Cycle Integration is possible for them to be integrated throughout the software development life cycle (SDLC), from early requirement stages to post-release maintenance.



Documentation: Both require clear documentation of test cases, expected results and identified bugs.



Test Case Design: Both involve designing <a href="https://testsigma.com/guides/what-is-test-case/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">test cases</a> with specific inputs and expected outcomes.



Positive Testing (Happy Path Testing) emphasizes the verification that the software functions as intended under normal conditions with valid inputs.



There is a difference between doing negative and positive testing, which are based on the idea that they supply invalid or unexpected inputs deliberately. This helps identify any error, crash or security issues that would occur as a result.&nbsp;



You can read details on <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/negative-testing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">negative testing</a> 



The approach to testing is the following:



Testing boundary values (for example, in a field expecting a small integer, you are expected to put down a very large number), invalid data formats and situations of error, which is not described explicitly in documentation requirements. For example, test that inputting special characters or overreaching character limit in a username field brings about an error and check if the application handles it properly.



Balancing Negative with Positive Testing:&nbsp;



In the context of the project phase and risk assessment, both strategies hold value — though the weightage accorded to each can differ. For instance, during the early stages positive testing might take precedence as a means of confirming core functionality.&nbsp;



However, as development evolves, negative testing gains more importance: it helps unearth those elusive edge cases which may pose security threats later down the line.



Additional Resources:



This blog post from Testsigma provides a more detailed explanation of <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/negative-testing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">negative testing</a> and its various techniques.



<figure class="wp-block-table aligncenter"><table><tbody><tr><td>Read More &#8211; <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/the-different-software-testing-types-explained/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Different Software Testing Types Explained</a></td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<h2 id="conclusion">Conclusion</h2>



Negative and Positive testing go hand in hand and yet when used effectively, both methods can enhance software quality to a great extent.&nbsp;



It is important for testers to be aware of the advantages and limitations of both approaches so that they are able to develop a thorough testing strategy that ensures user satisfaction throughout the use of the product as well as a strong final output from development.



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<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“If you&#8217;re not paying for the product, you are the product.”<cite>Andrew Lewis</cite></blockquote>



When the 2020 documentary, ‘<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11464826/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">The Social Dilemma</a>,’ directed by Jeff Orlowski, dropped on Netflix, it sounded the alarm bell that was already ringing loudly. It highlighted the familiar quote among millions of viewers globally by driving the point of how Big Tech has been misusing our data without our consent.



The documentary came in a backdrop of tumultuous times &#8211; with the CEOs of Google, Facebook, and Twitter questioned by the US Senate Judiciary and Senate Commerce Committees. If you had followed the Facebook hearings minutely, you must have frequently come across the term ‘cross-website tracking’. 



During one such grilling session, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley questioned Facebook (now Meta) CEO Mark Zuckerberg about a tentative internal tool named ‘Centra.’ The tool purportedly tracked all Facebook users across the internet.&nbsp;



While tracking user activity was not an alien concept, very few could grasp its implications and the extent to which it is used. With the Facebook hearings and the viral Netflix documentary, suddenly, it was out in the open. The practice of cross-site tracking ushered in serious privacy concerns and rightly so among the billions of internet users worldwide. In this article, we will try to understand cross website tracking, its impact on user privacy, and how to minimize its effects.







<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#What_is_Cross_Website_Tracking">1 What is Cross Website Tracking?</a></li><li><a href="#How_Does_Cross_Website_Tracking_Work">2 How Does Cross Website Tracking Work?</a><ul><li><a href="#Cookies">2.1 Cookies</a></li><li><a href="#Web_Beacons">2.2 Web Beacons</a></li><li><a href="#Canvas_Fingerprinting">2.3 Canvas Fingerprinting</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="#What_is_the_Purpose_of_Cross_Website_Tracking">3 What is the Purpose of Cross Website Tracking?</a><ul><li><a href="#Website_Analytics">3.1 Website Analytics</a></li><li><a href="#Website_Performance">3.2 Website Performance</a></li><li><a href="#Advertising">3.3 Advertising</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="#When_Does_it_Become_Potentially_Problematic">4 When Does it Become Potentially Problematic?</a></li><li><a href="#How_to_Stop_Cross_Website_Tracking">5 How to Stop Cross Website Tracking?</a></li><li><a href="#To_Conclude">6 To Conclude</a></li></ul></div>
<h2 id="h-what-is-cross-website-tracking">What is Cross Website Tracking?</h2>



It is precisely what its name entails! Cross website tracking refers to the practice of advertisers, businesses, and other digital agencies and entities tracking your online activity to monitor your browsing habits. The website visited by the user primarily does the tracking, but third-party apps can also gather and access this data. There are multiple reasons to justify this practice &#8211; product improvement, personalized user experience, and targetted advertising. Cross website tracking eases your experience by remembering basic information, like your language preferences. It also makes browsing easier and publisher service better.&nbsp;



While Big Tech and other agencies portray cross website tracking as an innocuous marketing act, it also poses some serious privacy threats. For one, it is a breach of privacy when websites engage in cross-site tracking without seeking consent from the users. Secondly, very few websites offer information in layman’s terms regarding how they will use the collected user data. Hence, unless you are willing to wade through the technical terms of every website you visit, it might be impossible to understand where your data might end up.&nbsp;&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-how-does-cross-website-tracking-work">How Does Cross Website Tracking Work?</h2>



So, how exactly do websites track your browsing behavior? Well, any user browsing the web often has trackers pursuing them and keeping a log of every activity. This is achieved with the help of widgets, scripts, or minuscule images embedded on any website user visits. While visiting many websites, you have surely noticed those social media buttons embedded there. Sure, most of the time, they are included for the sites to gain useful analytics regarding their content. But the concerning issue is they also send your data back to those platforms to create user profiles for targeted advertisements.&nbsp;



Some of the most commonly used web tracking systems and web trackers are:&nbsp;



<h3 id="h-cookies">Cookies</h3>



Cookies are the primary tools used by websites in the process of cross-website tracking. It is quite an ingenious concept. You visit a website, and a small packet of data is transferred to your device’s browser courtesy of your <a href="https://www.hostinger.in/tutorials/what-is-a-web-server" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">web server</a>. This small packet is called a computer cookie aka web, internet, browser, or HTTP cookie. Cookies are designed specially to memorize your browsing information and online activity. 



Cookies work in a simple manner:



<ul><li>The browser requests a web page from the web server</li><li>The server transmits the page along with a cookie</li><li>The cookie gets stored in the hard drive of your device</li></ul>



There are three different types of cookies:



<ul><li>Persistent cookie</li><li>First-party or session cookie</li><li>Third-party cookie</li></ul>



While the first two types of cookies are generally used to boost your browsing experience by remembering your passwords and language preferences, it is the third type you should be wary of. Persistent cookies come with an expiration date, and session cookies are temporary ones that get deleted with the closing of your browser. But the third-party cookie that keeps track of your online behavior is the tracking cookie.



<h3 id="h-web-beacons">Web Beacons</h3>



Web beacons are used as a single-pixel transparent graphic image by a website to log user behavior. They work similarly to cookies to monitor user browsing habits and navigation for advertising and analytics purposes. One such web beacon is the Facebook Pixel, enjoying a ubiquitous presence in your browsing activities. It tracks almost every aspect of your web browsing activity and aids advertisers in putting up targeted ads for you or others exhibiting similar behavior. Beacons also enable IP address tracking in emails by logging the exact time and date as well as your IP address when you open any mail embedded with a beacon.&nbsp;



<h3 id="h-canvas-fingerprinting">Canvas Fingerprinting</h3>



The practice of websites deciphering how the user’s browser responds to graphical instructions is known as canvas fingerprinting. Any website with this feature can direct your browser to draw a hidden image. This particular image varies with the individual’s device, graphics card, and hardware settings, resulting in the rendition of a unique image for every user. The distinctive image acts as a unique digital fingerprint for every user and can provide accurate information when coupled with other tracking data.&nbsp;



HTML5, the latest version of the coding language HTML, was developed for animations and drawing graphics on websites. However, it includes canvas fingerprinting, resulting in its co-opting of it as an effective tracking and fingerprinting tool.&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-what-is-the-purpose-of-cross-website-tracking">What is the Purpose of Cross Website Tracking?</h2>



There are many legit reasons for websites to keep track of user activity. Most sites do it to boost website performances and personalize user experience. Let’s say that you are into reading books and watching movies at leisure. So, won’t you prefer advertisements from streaming services and publishing houses over furniture and bedsheets? This is exactly achieved through cross website tracking that allows targeted advertising based on the browsing behavior of any user.&nbsp;



Some of the primary reasons behind cross-website tracking are:



<h3 id="h-website-analytics">Website Analytics</h3>



Almost all websites glean user information by using analytics software to gauge how customers use their site and get visitors&#8217; demographics. Information like how visitors arrive on the site and the number of pages they visit help the owners make important business decisions and optimize the site.&nbsp;



For easier understanding, let us take the example of any news publishing website. When publishers notice that most visitors are hitting upon one story only, they opt for better interlinking between posts. It will make the other stories easily accessible too and increase the website’s overall views and footfalls.&nbsp;



Google Analytics makes for the most commonly used analytics software on the internet. With an estimated client base of 29 million sites, Google Analytics is in use in <a href="https://trends.builtwith.com/analytics/Google-Analytics">88.5%</a> of the top 10,000 sites.&nbsp;



<h3 id="h-website-performance">Website Performance</h3>



Many websites require some tracking to perform the intended way. YouTube might make the best case for this. When you are watching YouTube videos, you will find the algorithm recommending videos you might want to view next. This feature is only possible because YouTube tracks your behavior on the platform and on other sites to recommend the best possible options for you.&nbsp;



<h3 id="h-advertising">Advertising</h3>



User-based target advertising is possibly the primary reason behind cross-website tracking. The adverts you come across on the internet are primarily because of the <a href="https://leadgenapp.io/data-collection-form/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">data collection</a> by websites based on your location, search interests, browser history, and even the time of the day you prefer to visit certain sites. Retargeting is another common practice where you see a barrage of adverts for products similar to something you might have searched for a while ago. To make your ads stand out and capture your audience&#8217;s attention, consider using After Effects templates from Videvo. These <a href="https://www.videvo.net/after-effects-templates/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">professionally designed templates</a> can help create visually stunning and engaging advertisements for your brand. By incorporating eye-catching animations and motion graphics, you can elevate your advertising efforts and make a lasting impression on your target audience.



Again, Google has cemented its place at the top with Google AdSense, the largest web-advertising network.&nbsp;



<h2 id="h-when-does-it-become-potentially-problematic">When Does it Become Potentially Problematic?</h2>



While cross-website tracking essentially has its list of pros, security and privacy concerns are a major red flag. Not knowing how much of your data is being collected or its purpose can be a legitimate concern in today&#8217;s digital world. Third-parties like affiliate and advertising networks and data brokers often use cookies and web beacons to collect our data without consent. Lack of transparency in the process and often without the consent of users are some serious concerns that need to be addressed immediately when it comes to this practice.&nbsp;



However, <a href="https://gdpr-info.eu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)</a> in Europe and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) are taking heed of these grave concerns and have developed a set of regulations. GDPR requires websites to provide users with opt-in consent forms before collecting personal user data. The websites cannot use pre-ticked boxes in such consent forms, which ensures users take positive steps to provide permission. Also, websites are required to provide users with the option to withdraw their consent any time they want, even if they have initially consented to use their personal data. 



CCPA, while not making it necessary to provide opt-in consent forms, mandates websites to mention upfront how the collected user data will be used and the parties they will be available to. Upcoming regulations will also allow users to view the data collected and the right to get them deleted if they feel so.



<h2 id="h-how-to-stop-cross-website-tracking">How to Stop Cross Website Tracking?</h2>



Well, yes, there are steps you can take to fight this practice and even prevent websites from tracking and storing your data. While if you are based in the European Union (EU) or California, USA, there are strong regulations that prohibit tracking user data without explicit consent. However, if you are from a country that does not have strict regulations in place, you can optimize your browser settings to prevent cross-website tracking.&nbsp;



If you are someone who has legitimate privacy concerns regarding cross-site tracking and finds it intrusive, here are some of the steps you can take to prevent cross-site tracking:



<ol><li>How to prevent cross-site tracking in Chrome?</li></ol>



For computers and laptops &#8211;



<ul><li>Open the Chrome browser and go to Settings</li><li>Click Cookies and other site data under the Privacy and security option</li><li>Turn Send a “Do not track” request with your browsing traffic off</li></ul>



For mobile phones &#8211; 



<ul><li>Open the Chrome app on your android device and go to Settings</li><li>Tap Do Not Track under Privacy and security</li><li>Turn the setting off</li></ul>







<ol start="2"><li>How to prevent cross-site tracking in Firefox?</li></ol>



Firefox has an in-built Private Browsing with Tracking Protection feature that prevents third parties from tracking your browsing activity across multiple websites. You can enable it with the following steps:



<ul><li>Open the Firefox browser and go to Settings</li><li>Tap on the Privacy and Security panel</li><li>Select the Custom radio button under Enhanced Tracking Protection to select what to block</li><li>Tick the Cookies checkbox (Cross-site and social media trackers is the default setting)</li><li>Close the about: preferences page</li></ul>







<ol start="3"><li>How to prevent cross-site tracking in iOS devices?</li></ol>



For Macbooks and PCs &#8211; 



<ul><li>Open the Safari browser on your Mac</li><li>Go to Safari &gt; Preferences and tap on Privacy</li><li>Select Prevent cross-site tracking</li></ul>



For iPhone and iPad &#8211; 



<ul><li>Go to Settings on your iPhone/iPad</li><li>Scroll down until you find Safari and tap on it</li><li>Tap the slider and turn on Prevent Cross-site Tracking under PRIVACY &amp; SECURITY</li></ul>







<h2 id="h-to-conclude">To Conclude</h2>



It is often claimed that data is possibly the most valuable resource today. As aptly put by the Former Global Head of Research and Senior Vice-President of Gartner, Inc., Peter Sondergaard, “Information is the oil of the 21st century, and analytics is the combustion engine.” While the debate whether data has surpassed oil or gold in value and importance is raging on, it is undeniable that data plays a major role in today’s world of digital information.&nbsp;



Hence, it is imperative that billions of internet users worldwide pay attention to their data being tracked and stored. Even though cross-website tracking may have a lot of things going for it, tracking and making your data available to third parties without any transparency or consent is a legitimate concern. To ensure a healthy trade-off, it is critical that the concerns of users are acknowledged, fully informed regarding the use of their personal information, and given a choice to not opt for sharing any data.&nbsp;