/Tracking/Fingerprinting/active/webgl/

• $ fingerprint@info:~ echo $WEBGL

• Name:

  WebGL
  

  Original feature purpose:

  WebGL (Web Graphics Library) is a JavaScript API for rendering interactive 3D and 2D graphics within any compatible web browser without the use of plugins. WebGL describes an additional rendering context and support objects for the HTML5 Canvas element. For more details see, e.g., MDN web docs

  
  

  FP-Explanation:

  There are two different WebGL Fingerprints:
  

  • WebGL Rendering Context Report Fingerprint
  • WebGL Canvas Image Base64 Fingerpint

  For the WebGL Report Fingerprint, the browser creates a WebGLRenderingContext and default constants, parameters and support information - including WebGL Unmasked Vendor and WebGL Unmasked Renderer (your graphics card name: e.g. "NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti Founders Edition" + Direct3D API support) are extracted to forge a fingerprint.
  
  The WebGL Canvas Image Base64 Fingerpint is analogous to the Canvas Fingerprint, except that WebGL operations are applied to render graphic elements, which are then fingerprinted.
  
  The same can be done for WebGL2.

  
  

  FP-Type:

  active
  

  FP-Categories:

  js, js-attrib, html5, hardware-dependent, software-dependent, consistent
  

  Counter-measures:

  • Disable WebGL API
    Description: Disable via WebGL via browser settings or Addon to block WebGL Fingerprinting.
    
  
  

  Publications/References:

  • K Mowery, Pixel Perfect: Fingerprinting Canvas in HTML5 (2012)
  • Y Cao, (Cross-)Browser Fingerprinting via OS and Hardware Level Features (2017)
  • WebGL Fingerprinting (BrowserLeaks.com)
  
  
• $ fingerprint@info:~ run webgl-demo

Demo:

>> Jump to WebGL Fingerprinting Demo <<