Privacy, Obscurity: Randomizing New Tabs

Published on Nov 10, 2016, filed under tools, misc. (Share this post, e.g., on Mastodon.)

This extension still exists, but I recommend using the extensible successor, IA Defensa New Tab Traffic Randomizer (free for personal use).

You want to leave a less predictable online trail ^*? I wrote a little browser extension for Chrome that accomplishes that: the New Tab Traffic Randomizer. Its source, likely to need a few more sets of eyes, is up on GitHub Codeberg.

What does the New Tab Traffic Randomizer do? It simply requests a random URL every time a new tab is opened. These URLs themselves are either predefined (currently including Code Responsibly and the EFF), semi-random (one from a pool of pages either generated through Wikipedia or randomrandom), or “really” random (through generating an alphabetical string to be used for a .com hostname).

Why? Less for fun, as other attempts suggest, rather for privacy, through obscurity, as the extension makes traffic patterns a bit more, random. The extension reflects the minimum I had in mind to bring in some element of “surprise” into my own online habits, habits that, so I hope, already focus on basic security and privacy (German readers remember some of the practices I shared with my family).

If you have ideas on how to extend and improve the extension, file an issue or fork and contribute to the project—I’d very much look forward to working on this together with a few more people. Yet everyone else, please just enjoy 😊

Oh. I did something like this before. I wrote a Chrome extension that highlights reset style sheets (still a malpractice), and likewise its source can be inspected and improved on GitHub Codeberg.

^* For whatever the reasons, and I assume perfectly legitimate ones just as I assume responsible use of the extension.

About Me

I’m Jens (long: Jens Oliver Meiert), and I’m an engineering lead, guerrilla philosopher, and indie publisher. I’ve worked as a technical lead and engineering manager at various companies (e.g., Google); I’m an active web and tool developer (code optimization, digital defense), a contributor to web standards (like HTML, CSS, WCAG), and a book author (O’Reilly, Frontend Dogma).

I love trying things—in web development and engineering management, but also in politics and philosophy, where I hold to one idea in particular: that we can only be well if we take good care of everyone. Here on meiert.com I talk about some of my perspectives and experiences. (Interpret charitably but be critical—and share feedback and advice that makes my work better.)