Hiding in Plain Sight: Query Obfuscation via Random Multilingual Searches

Kód výsledku v IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F00216305%3A26230%2F26%3A0193583" target="_blank" >RIV/00216305:26230/26:0193583 - isvavai.cz</a>

Výsledek na webu

<a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-032-00633-2_15" target="_blank" >https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-032-00633-2_15</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-00633-2_15" target="_blank" >10.1007/978-3-032-00633-2_15</a>

Jazyk výsledku

angličtina

Název v původním jazyce

Hiding in Plain Sight: Query Obfuscation via Random Multilingual Searches

Popis výsledku v původním jazyce

Modern search engines extensively personalize results by building detailed user profiles based on query history and behaviour. While personalization can enhance relevance, it introduces privacy risks and can lead to filter bubbles. This paper proposes and evaluates a lightweight, client-side query obfuscation strategy using randomly generated multilingual search queries to disrupt user profiling. Through controlled experiments on the Seznam.cz search engine, we assess the impact of interleaving real queries with obfuscating noise in various language configurations and ratios. Our findings show that while displayed search results remain largely stable, the search engine's identified user interests shift significantly under obfuscation. We further demonstrate that such random queries can prevent accurate profiling and overwrite established user profiles. This study provides practical evidence for query obfuscation as a viable privacy-preserving mechanism and introduces a tool that enables users to autonomously protect their search behaviour without modifying existing infrastructure.

Název v anglickém jazyce

Hiding in Plain Sight: Query Obfuscation via Random Multilingual Searches

Popis výsledku anglicky

Modern search engines extensively personalize results by building detailed user profiles based on query history and behaviour. While personalization can enhance relevance, it introduces privacy risks and can lead to filter bubbles. This paper proposes and evaluates a lightweight, client-side query obfuscation strategy using randomly generated multilingual search queries to disrupt user profiling. Through controlled experiments on the Seznam.cz search engine, we assess the impact of interleaving real queries with obfuscating noise in various language configurations and ratios. Our findings show that while displayed search results remain largely stable, the search engine's identified user interests shift significantly under obfuscation. We further demonstrate that such random queries can prevent accurate profiling and overwrite established user profiles. This study provides practical evidence for query obfuscation as a viable privacy-preserving mechanism and introduces a tool that enables users to autonomously protect their search behaviour without modifying existing infrastructure.

Druh

D - Stať ve sborníku

CEP obor

—

OECD FORD obor

10201 - Computer sciences, information science, bioinformathics (hardware development to be 2.2, social aspect to be 5.8)

Projekt

—

Návaznosti

S - Specificky vyzkum na vysokych skolach

Rok uplatnění

2025

Kód důvěrnosti údajů

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Název statě ve sborníku

Coppens, B., Volckaert, B., Naessens, V., De Sutter, B. (eds) Availability, Reliability and Security

ISBN

978-3-032-00633-2

ISSN

—

e-ISSN

—

Počet stran výsledku

16

Strana od-do

253-268

Název nakladatele

Springer Nature Switzerland AG

Místo vydání

Ghent

Místo konání akce

Ghent

Datum konání akce

11. 8. 2025

Typ akce podle státní příslušnosti

WRD - Celosvětová akce

Kód UT WoS článku

001582782000015