Why your Web browser is getting more secure

Amid growing pressure from government regulators and consumer advocacy groups, Web browser makers are developing new ways to help consumers protect their privacy online.

Google and Firefox developer Mo-zilla in recent days have announced new tools in various states of development to help users of their browsers better control and restrict the data online advertisers collect about them. Microsoft, which makes Internet Explorer, announced a similar move last month.

The moves follow rising publicity and concern about the tracking of consumers' online activities by advertisers and corporations. The intensive data collection allows advertisers to put together detailed dossiers on consumers - sometimes containing sensitive information about their health or financial concerns - often without their knowledge.

Last month, both the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Commerce issued reports on online privacy practices and raised the possibility of government action to ensure consumers are given greater control over their data and more information about how it's being used.

Industry leaders have been supportive of giving consumers greater tools to control their information but are pushing for self-regulation rather than government intervention.

Of the tools, the one from Mountain View, Calif.-based Google Inc. is the first to be available to consumers. It was made available for download two weeks ago and is a technological fix to a problem some consumers have when trying to prevent online advertisers from tracking them.

Many online advertisers allow consumers to opt out of having their movements tracked for marketing purposes. When consumers opt out, the advertiser installs a cookie - or small file - in their browser that states their preference. But consumers who have attempted to opt out of tracking can unwittingly allow advertisers to resume monitoring them by deleting their cookies. Ironically, deleting cookies is something many consumers do to protect their privacy or to reset their Web browser.

Google's new tool - called Keep My Opt-Outs - would preserve consumers' tracking choices even when they delete their browser's cookies. The tool comes in the form of a browser plug-in - a mini-program that consumers can download and add to their Web browser to give it more functions.

For now, the plug-in works only with Google's Chrome browser, which is used by a small fraction of the Internet population. But Google officials said they are working on plug-ins for other browsers as well.

Mozilla, meanwhile, announced Jan. 23 it is working on a potentially simpler and more comprehensive approach. Consumers would be able to choose a "do not track" setting in their Web browser that would be broadcast to every website they visit when they type in its address or click on a link.