n.
A small, invisible image embedded into an HTML-formatted email message or a Web site and used to track the activity of users who read the message or visit the site.
Example Citation:
"Invisible tags sometimes called Web bugs are widely used in HTML e-mail by marketers and others to detect whether an individual has opened an e-mail message. The Congressional Privacy Caucus has announced plans to hold hearings to investigate the use of Web bugs later this month. Mr. Smith said that it was now clear that JavaScript could be used to create a more powerful Web bug so that not only can someone find out when a message is read, but also what is being said about it."
—Amy Harmon, "A New Trick Gives Snoops Easy Access To E-Mail," The New York Times, February 5, 2001
—Amy Harmon, "A New Trick Gives Snoops Easy Access To E-Mail," The New York Times, February 5, 2001
Notes:
News of these Web bugs (also called HTML bugs) has exploded over the past couple of days, but they've been around in a less sophisticated form for about a year and a half. Their first exposure to the harsh light of the mainstream came in the following Washington Post article:
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