AliExpress accused of using silent audio for device fingerprinting

AliExpress, owned by Alibaba Group, has been accused of using covert methods to track users through browser fingerprinting. Researchers and the Brave browser reported that the marketplace utilized the Web Audio API to play inaudible sound signals at zero volume. By measuring the minute, repeatable differences in how a user's specific hardware, CPU, and browser processed these signals, the site could create a unique digital identifier for devices without relying on traditional cookies.

The issue was discovered by a developer who noticed that his Bluetooth headphones would stop playing audio from his phone whenever the AliExpress website was open on his computer. Further investigation revealed that the scripts were maintaining an active audio connection to the system, even when the browser tab was muted.

In addition to audio-based fingerprinting, the scripts reportedly collected various other data points, including canvas rendering, WebGL, hardware configurations, screen dimensions, and network information to build more detailed device profiles. Brave has announced that it will block these specific scripts in its browser, noting that such protections are enabled by default. As of late August 2026, Alibaba has not issued an official response to these findings.