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Ask HN: Why is referrer control not working for WSJ?
I usually use referrer control to spoof my referring link to news.google.com.
But, it stopped working today for some reason. I block cookies from WSJ so that's not the reason.
It doesn't allow me to read anything but shows me the sign in/ subscribe page.
- minimaxir 11y agoLooks like WSJ found a workaround for that bypass. Google will not be amused.
- kaushikktiwari 11y agohttps://support.google.com/news/publisher/answer/40543?hl=en&topic=11707 https://support.google.com/news/publisher/answer/40543?hl=en...
- NameNickHN 11y agoI've noticed the same thing. I guess that they've stopped using cookies and are using some kind of "super cookie" that uses the visitors computer environment to create a individual id.
- mcintyre1994 11y agoWSJ are testing closing the loophole to see if it improves their subscription rates: http://digiday.com/publishers/wall-street-journal-paywall-google/ http://digiday.com/publishers/wall-street-journal-paywall-go... > A Journal spokesperson said the publisher was running a test to see if doing so would entice would-be subscribers to pay up. The rep wouldn’t elaborate on how long and extensive the experiment was and if permanently closing the loophole was a possible outcome.