Websites are using this FROST-y new technique to spy on users by snooping on their SSD activity
Researchers at Graz University of Technology have introduced a new side-channel attack technique called FROST, which can track user activity through browser interactions. This method exploits the Origin Private File System (OPFS) to measure SSD access speeds, revealing visited websites and opened applications. While there are limitations to the attack, it highlights the increasing vulnerabilities associated with modern web browsers.
- ▪The FROST technique allows spying on user activities via browser interactions.
- ▪It exploits SSD access speeds to track website visits and application usage.
- ▪The attack requires creating large files and has limitations based on the user's system configuration.
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| Original publisher | TechRadar |
| Canonical URL | https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/websites-are-using-this-frost-y-new-technique-to-spy-on-users-by-snooping-on-their-ssd-activity |
| Publication time | Thu, 28 May 2026 19:15:00 +0000 |
| Retrieval time | 2026-05-28T19:18:31.032Z |
| Last seen | 2026-05-28T19:18:31.032Z |
| Headline source | Publisher (no WeSearch rewrite) |
| Excerpt source | publisher body |
| Excerpt method | First ~120 words (~800 chars) of extracted publisher body, fair-use limited. |
| Summary | WeSearch · cerebras-chat (WeSearch summarizer) |
| Summary source text | contentText |
| Citation coverage | Summary is a WeSearch-generated derivative; primary citation is the original publisher URL. |
| Cluster | _r-WdAc8WRTU |
| Cluster logic | Grouped by semantic title/content similarity across sources within a rolling window. Same-publisher template collisions are excluded from coverage comparison. |
| Ranking reason | Story pages are not engagement-ranked. Hub feeds use recency, with optional source-diversified chronological ordering (cap consecutive stories per source). No personalized ranking. |
| Publisher visit | Yes — open original |
| Substitutes article? | No — link-out required for full text |
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| Indexing | May the item be indexed (stored, ranked, made findable)? | Allowed |
| Snippet | May a short excerpt of the publisher's text be shown? | Allowed |
| AI summary | May WeSearch generate its own short summary of the article? | Limited |
| Retrieval / RAG | May the content be exposed for third-party retrieval-augmented generation? | Not asserted |
| Model training | May the content be used to train AI models? | Not asserted |
| Commercial reuse | May the content be reused commercially? | Not permitted |
Basis: Derived from the published RSS/Atom feed. Contact: [email protected]. Reviewed: 2026-07-24.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Pro Security Websites are using this FROST-y new technique to spy on users by snooping on their SSD activity News By Sead Fadilpašić published 28 May 2026 A new side-channel attack was discovered When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Shutterstock) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Researchers at Graz University of Technology unveiled FROST, a browser side‑channel attack The method can reveal visited websites and opened desktop apps, but requires large file creationLimitations exist, yet the study highlights how modern browser features expand the…
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