Fingerprinting Guide
Browser fingerprinting can identify you without cookies. Learn how it works and what you can do about it.
Browser fingerprinting is a tracking technique that combines dozens of browser attributes — screen resolution, installed fonts, GPU model, timezone, language, and more — to create a unique identifier. Unlike cookies, fingerprints are extremely difficult to delete or block.
Browser fingerprinting is a tracking technique that identifies you by combining dozens of data points from your browser — screen size, GPU, fonts, timezone, and more — to create a unique "fingerprint." Unlike cookies, you cannot delete it.
Just as every person has unique fingerprints, the combination of your browser's properties creates a pattern that is almost always unique to you. No single data point is identifying on its own, but together they form a reliable identifier.
Imagine a crowd of people. Individually, many share the same hair color, height, or shoe size. But the combination of all these traits together — brown hair, 175cm tall, size 42 shoes, blue eyes, wearing glasses — makes you identifiable even without knowing your name.
Theory is easier to grasp with your own data. Each bar below shows how much identifying information one signal from this browser contributes. Everything is calculated locally.
Browser fingerprinting collects data from multiple categories:
Canvas fingerprinting: Draws invisible shapes and text on a hidden canvas element. Different GPUs and drivers render pixels slightly differently, creating a unique hash.
WebGL fingerprinting: Queries your GPU vendor, renderer model, and supported extensions. See your WebGL data at our WebGL detection tool .
Audio fingerprinting: Processes audio signals through the Web Audio API. Hardware and software differences create unique audio processing signatures.
Font detection: Measures text rendered in different fonts to determine which fonts are installed on your system.
See your own fingerprint analyzed in real-time with our browser fingerprint checker . It shows your canvas hash, WebGL renderer, and audio fingerprint.
Fingerprinting serves both legitimate and controversial purposes:
Banks use fingerprinting to detect when someone accesses your account from an unfamiliar device, triggering additional verification steps.
Websites identify automated bots by their unusual fingerprint patterns — bots often have missing or inconsistent browser properties.
Advertising networks use fingerprinting to track users across different websites without cookies, building browsing profiles for targeted advertising.
As browsers block third-party cookies, some companies use fingerprinting as an alternative tracking method that users cannot easily disable.
Complete fingerprint prevention is nearly impossible, but you can significantly reduce its effectiveness:
Use Brave Browser: Randomizes fingerprint data for each session, making tracking unreliable
Firefox Enhanced Tracking Protection: Blocks known fingerprinting scripts in strict mode
Tor Browser: Makes all users look identical by standardizing browser properties
Browser extensions: Canvas Blocker and similar extensions can add noise to fingerprint data
Keep browser updated: Newer versions include better fingerprint resistance features
For more comprehensive privacy strategies, read our guide on how to protect your privacy online .
You cannot completely prevent fingerprinting, but you can reduce its effectiveness. Use browsers like Brave or Firefox with enhanced tracking protection. Brave randomizes fingerprint data, making each session appear different. The Tor Browser makes all users appear identical to defeat fingerprinting.
In many jurisdictions, yes — but regulations are tightening. The EU's GDPR requires consent for non-essential tracking, which includes fingerprinting. The ePrivacy Directive also covers it. In practice, enforcement varies. Many websites use fingerprinting without explicit consent, but this is increasingly challenged.
Cookies are stored files on your device that you can delete. Fingerprints are calculated from your browser's properties and cannot be deleted because they are not stored on your device. Cookies require consent under many privacy laws. Fingerprinting happens passively without storing anything on your computer.
Research from the EFF's Panopticlick project found that 83.6% of browsers have a unique fingerprint. With Flash or Java enabled, that number rose to 94.2%. Modern studies suggest that with advanced techniques (canvas, WebGL, audio), over 99% of browsers can be uniquely identified.
No. VPNs only hide your IP address. Your browser fingerprint — screen size, GPU, fonts, timezone, and other attributes — remains the same whether or not you use a VPN. To reduce fingerprinting, you need to modify browser behavior, not just network routing.