LinkedIn is spying on you, according to a new ‘BrowserGate’ security report — scripts stealthily scan visitors’ browsers for over 6,000 Chrome extensions and harvest hardware data

LinkedIn is spying on you, according to a new ‘BrowserGate’ security report — scripts stealthily scan visitors’ browsers for over 6,000 Chrome extensions and harvest hardware data

https://www.tomshardware.com/software/browsers/linkedin-scans-visitors-browsers-for-over-6000-chrome-extensions-and-collects-device-data

Publish Date: 2026-04-04 12:46:00

Source Domain: www.tomshardware.com

LinkedIn is understood to be injecting a JavaScript fingerprinting script into every page load that probes visitors’ browsers for 6,236 installed Chrome extensions and collects detailed device telemetry, according to a report by Fairlinked e.V. and independently confirmed by BleepingComputer.

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The script, which BleepingComputer verified through its own testing, also harvests the CPU core count, available memory, screen resolution, time zone, language settings, and battery status. The findings were first published in Fairlinked’s “BrowserGate” report, which claims the script works by attempting to access file resources tied to specific extension IDs, a well-documented technique for detecting whether extensions are installed in Chromium-based browsers. A GitHub repo documented LinkedIn scanning for roughly 2,000 extensions in 2025, while a separate repo from February this year logged approximately 3,000. The current count stands at 6,236.

Many of the targeted extensions are LinkedIn-related tools, including sales intelligence products from Apollo, Lusha, and ZoomInfo that directly compete with LinkedIn’s offerings. The Fairlinked report claims that LinkedIn scans more than 200 competing products in total and that the script also checks for language and grammar extensions, tools for tax professionals, and other categories with no obvious connection to LinkedIn’s platform.

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Beyond extensions, the script gathers hardware and software fingerprinting data, such as CPU class, device memory, screen dimensions, time zone offset, battery status, and storage capabilities. These data points are commonly used in browser fingerprinting to build unique device profiles, but because LinkedIn accounts are tied to real names, employers, and job titles, the extension and device data can be linked back to positively identify individuals. The…

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