Web bugs are special links in Web pages that collect much more detailed information about your online activities than a simple cookie can. Bugs then feed all that information about you directly into a database containing tons of other information about you that has been gathered and stored by other Web bugs.

Many sites use Web bugs to help track how many people have visited a particular Web site or to track what kinds of browsers are being used. For advertisers, the really exciting news is that Web bugs can be used to collect information — about you! — such as what sites you're visiting, the contents of the pages you read, and how long you looked at that page before clicking to another page.

For more information about Web bugs, visit the Privacy Foundation Web Bug FAQ.