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AliExpress caught using audio hardware for silent device fingerprinting
Developer Matt Callaghan has uncovered a sophisticated device-tracking method used by AliExpress that utilizes audio hardware to create unique digital fingerprints. The discovery occurred while Callaghan was debugging issues with Bluetooth multipoint headphones, which failed to switch audio focus when an AliExpress browser tab was active.
Investigation of the site's source code revealed that AliExpress uses hidden scripts, including collina.js and fireyejs.js, to execute audio fingerprinting. These scripts create a synthetic Web Audio processing graph that captures hardware-dependent execution artifacts. By routing this through a gain stage set to zero, the platform can maintain an active audio stream to identify specific hardware and software configurations without producing audible sound.
This method allows for comprehensive device fingerprinting that functions even if a user rejects or deletes cookies. In addition to audio hardware data, the scripts collect information from Canvas rendering, WebGL, display settings, and WebRTC behavior to build a detailed profile of the user's device. The tracking routines were found to be embedded within Alibaba’s anti-bot suite.
Entities
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [○ 1 SOURCE] AliExpress maintained an active audio stream with the gain set to zero to avoid audible detection. www.infoq.com
- [● 4 SOURCES] The tracking scripts collected data from Canvas rendering, WebGL, and hardware configurations. www.fehmarn24.de · www.leinetal24.de · www.hna.de · www.op-online.de
- [● 4 SOURCES] The tracking method works without the use of cookies. www.fehmarn24.de · www.leinetal24.de · www.hna.de · www.op-online.de
- [○ 1 SOURCE] The tracking routines were embedded inside Alibaba’s AWS anti-bot suite. www.infoq.com
- [● 5 SOURCES] AliExpress used scripts to create a comprehensive browser and device fingerprint. www.fehmarn24.de · www.leinetal24.de · www.hna.de · www.op-online.de · www.infoq.com
- [● 5 SOURCES] Developer Matt Callaghan discovered that AliExpress used audio hardware to identify devices. www.fehmarn24.de · www.leinetal24.de · www.hna.de · www.op-online.de · www.infoq.com