This Student Project Could Kill Digital Ad Targeting

Her creation, called "Vortex," is a browser extension that's part game, part ad-targeting disrupter that helps people turn their user profiles and the browsing information into alternate fake identities that have nothing to do with reality.

Vortex features a profile switcher that people can use and share to take on a new identity while browsing the web. "It's a way of masking your identity across networks," she said.

Vortex has security holes that could be exploited by nefarious actors, which is one reason Ms. Law refuses to release the full platform.