Adblock has just thrown a wrench into Facebook’s bid for world ad-domination with the launch of its revamped Atlas people-tracking system.

Atlas was quietly re-launched earlier this week, and not surprisingly the system didn’t go over well with privacy advocates, who dislike the idea of being tracked as they flit from site to site around the web.

Facebook originally bought Atlas from Microsoft, and has since tweaked it to use ‘Like’ buttons and other mechanisms in place on websites to monitor people’s browsing activity and link that activity to their Facebook profiles. Using the information it scoops up, it’s then able to serve ads based on what it believes are your interests. For example if you visit lots of websites about fishing, you’ll probably be served ads for fishing rods, bait and so on.

The system comes with the added benefit of being able to track your purchases too. All in all, Atlas is more accurate at tracking users around the web than anything Google has, says SiliconANGLE’s Winston Edmondson:

“Using Facebook profiles gives the service an unprecedented amount of cross channel tracking capabilities. Facebook will be able to follow and track individuals as they use mobile apps, something that cookies, the dominant tracking technology, are unable to do. From start to finish, the platform provides features that go beyond what Google can offer.”

Adblock claims it’s found a way to block Atlas. “While Adblock Plus applauds innovation that improves the advertising experience for the user, we firmly believe that the user should have the choice whether or not they want to be tracked and targeted,” wrote Adblock’s PR Chief Ben Williams in a blog post.

By installing Adblock’s software, it’s possible to ‘break’ the tracking cycle of Atlas and stem the flow of data back to Facebook’s servers. Adblock doesn’t reveal exactly how it’s managed to do this, but it does have a good track record of doing what it says.

photo credit: h.koppdelaney via photopin cc