LinkedIn is facing two class action lawsuits for scanning users' browser extensions to detect data-scraping tools, a practice the company acknowledges but claims is for security purposes. The lawsuits allege inadequate disclosure of this surveillance activity, which primarily affects Chrome and Chromium-based browsers. This controversy follows a recent report by German advocacy group Fairlinked that brought the practice to light.
Background
Browser extension scanning is a controversial practice where websites detect which browser extensions users have installed, often for security reasons but raising privacy concerns. LinkedIn is a Microsoft-owned professional networking platform with nearly 1 billion users worldwide.
- Source
- Ars Technica
- Published
- Apr 9, 2026 at 05:08 AM
- Score
- 7.0 / 10