Now selling online: your privacy

Consumers who shop online this holiday season may be putting their privacy at risk without knowing it, according to a new report.

A survey conducted by the Electronic Privacy Information Center found that only a handful of the 100 most popular online stores provide shoppers adequate privacy.

Of the sites, 18 did not post a privacy policy, 35 had profile-based advertisers operating on their pages, and 87 used cookies, which track user browsing and online shopping habits.

"The stated policies of most big shopping sites run the gamut from bad to atrocious," said Jason Catlett, president of Junkbusters, a privacy advocacy firm.

The complete report can be found at www.news.com.