Why would you do this to us?
this post was submitted on 31 Jul 2026
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You'd rather have your browser use the bandwidth to download all 500 language versions and 200 otherwise localized versions of the website and use some random language as default, maybe chinese or spanish for being the biggest languages.
Is it possible for URL to request the one that i want? I feel like i remember different language versions of webpages from before browser fingerprinting - though I guess I don't know long ago it started.
Even so, it seems like it only needs to know my request as a one of 500 group. An individualised fingerprint of 1 in 10bn seems like overkill to me. Assuming that's what fingerprint means in this context.
Be requesting the specific language site you are giving them the information anyway.
I'm ok to give them 1 in 500 resolution (or whatever rough order of magnitude) to tell them i want to read the EN version. That's a lot less precise than 1 in 10 billion or whatever the fingerprint is.
Some browsers literally have a 'spoof is language to english' option to anti fingerprint. To hide in the horde.
And I'd rather DL 500 languages of actual content than 1mb of page and 2GB of ad shit.
Bold of you to assume that modern websites will not be 1gb of pages and 2gb of ads
Thing is, while it wasn't called "browser fingerprinting" immediately, it basically started as soon as JS was around. And feature-detection / media-queries actually make for better compatibility than just User-Agent strings (and other headers).
Content negotiation never really caught on, as best as I can tell. There's a number of headers that the client can send so that the server can select a version by language, content-type, and a few other things, but in all the web deployments I've ever done content-negotiation was never a consideration.
Almost any information can be abused.
And which language would it start in, in order to offer you this list?
Imagine if every site did this, it would be so cumbersome. Worse than the cookie banners.
And either way, when you select the language, you've given them the fingerprinting data anyway. 😂 Completely pointless.
The language that is chosen in the top level domain of the URL.
If it is a domain.es it is in Spanish.
If it is a domain.co.uk it is in English.
If it is a domain.it it is in Italian.
Or just the main language where the website is located. It isn't difficult to add a language icon somewhere at the top or bottom.
Nothing about it needs to track the user. The only info you give them is that you can speak a certain language. Not that it is your main language. Or that you can only understand one.
But you are similarly revealing your language by going to said url.
yeah but now the website knows i speak english. that does not personally identify me. there are 5 billion people speaking english
ok nvm it's 1.5 billion, still a lot.
Yes, because you're privileged and happen to speak a common language. That's doesn't help those who don't.
name a language that websites are written in that has less than a million users
You really think icelanders don't have websites? Heck, Maltese is one of the official languages of EU so all the officiam EU pages are bound to be translated to that. Sámi languages have a official minority language status in nordic countries and they have tons their own websites.
ok so it's not a perfect solution. so?
Like the other person said, you've already become a data point by visiting the page.
Needs to, no, but they will. Regardless of whether or not it's your main language, you will be a data point by selecting your preferred display language. Unfortunately, of course.
I already have to scroll past 20 options to get to Australia in country drop down lists lol
Dude, language detection is literally done with a simple HTTP header set by the browser. There is no need for all the other crap.
I just go to /fr for French. That sounds like a non-issue.
Then you just tell them your language anyway, but it's more cumbersome to you.
As someone not in the USA, I cannot tell you how absolutely annoying and terrible it is when the website automatically selects a language/region for you. It happens so often.
"Oh, you have a Polish IP? Here is the whole website in Polish. Also, the address field will now only accept Polish addresses!". Nah bro, I just live near the border. I wish I could select language by adjusting the path, that would be so much better than what some sites do.
Your example isn't even the worst. Polish IP and Polish language.
I have an Estonian IP so I've had websites determine I want everything in Russian.
There was some website at one point that didn't even give me an option for English. Estonian IP? Okay, you speak Russian. You don't speak English. And we don't support Estonian.
IT'S NOT EVEN AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE FOR THE COUNTRY WHERE MY IP ADDRESS IS LOCATED
Nevertheless, you do actually understand a decent amount of Russian...and if you're old enough you are fluent.