It is easy to expose users' secret web habits, say researchers

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The researchers argue such data - which some firms scoop up and use to target ads - should be protected.

Before the data is used to customise the range of adverts which people see, any information that could be used to identify exactly who generated the clicks is supposed to be removed.

Said Mr Dewes, it was "Trivial" - meaning easy - to tie the information directly to people and reveal exactly where they went online, the terms they searched for and the things they bought.

The public information included links people shared via Twitter, YouTube videos they reported watching, news articles they passed on via social media or when they posted online photos of items they bought or places they visited.

"The public information available about users is growing so it's getting easier to find the information to do the de-anonymisation," he said.

The information revealed an intimate portrait of the browsing habits of people, said Ms Eckert.

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