Councils letting third parties track visits to webpages

A new investigation has found that councils are sharing information about users of their websites with dozens of private companies.

More than 400 local authorities allowed at least one third-party company to track individuals who visit their sites, including sensitive sections of their sites, such as when they seek help with a benefit claim, or with a disability or alcoholism.

Critics have argued that council websites serve a public purpose and should not let outside firms monitor their users’ activity, especially given the sensitive nature of some visits.

Anonymous web browser Brave used open-source tools to see what companies were present on certain webpages. They found 409 council websites in the UK allowed private companies to receive data about their visitors.