Web sites often employ a number of techniques to gather information about their visitors. In some cases, this information is used to customize your browsing experience; in others, it’s used so that the Web site’s developers can analyze the different types of visitors to their sites. In other cases, information is used for unscrupulous purposes. By collecting IP addresses, a Web site developer can see where visitors are coming from geographically (yes, your IP address reveals a general geographic location) as well as what operating systems, browsers, and other computer tools are being used. Other information gathered can include where you came from and where you went after visiting the Web site.

You’ve probably heard of cookies, right? Web beacons are often used alongside cookies to monitor the Web site’s usage. However, Web beacons are also quite different from cookies. For example, you can set your computer’s browser to flat out refuse cookies if you so desire but you are nearly defenseless against Web beacons. Web beacons are placed on both Web sites and e-mail messages as tiny, nearly imperceptible images. Since they are actually graphical elements of the Web page or e-mail message itself, they aren’t detected by standard means such as anti-spyware applications. After all, they are simply tiny images.

ADVERTISEMENT

Wow - Have you heard of the Lifelock yet? The CEO is so proud of his service that he’s shouting his SSN from the rooftops! That’s right

His name is Todd Davis

and his REAL social security number is 457-55-5462

Click the banner below to learn more …

Before we get into what Web beacons do, let’s look at how they appear on a Web site or within an e-mail message. Can you spot a 1 pixel image of a white dot on this page? Not likely - even if you were actually looking. Web beacons often take the form of just such an image and become virtually invisible.

Like most images on Web pages, the actual image file is hosted on a server. When you land on a page with an image, your computer must connect to the server and retrieve the image file. This happens seamlessly whenever you visit Web sites with images. However, when your computer connects to the server to download the image, it then communicates information to the server, which is readily retrievable by the Web master or spammer. This communication confirms activity. It lets the server know that a web site has been visited or an e-mail opened.

When Web beacons are used on Web pages, third parties can monitor and track the Web site’s activities. If you turn off cookies in your browser, you can prevent the tracking of your personal activity though the Web site will still be able to detect an anonymous visit.

When Web beacons are used in e-mail messages, they effectively tell the spammer that an e-mail message has been opened - which then confirms that the spammer has a good e-mail address that is actively being used by a real person. Why would spammers want this confirmation? By confirming that live eyeballs are checking the messages for a particular e-mail address, spammers know they have a hot target. Web beacons in e-mail messages are undetectable to you, but once the e-mail is opened, the server hosting the image is accessed, and your e-mail address has been confirmed as being a hot one.

Fortunately, many e-mail applications are on to the Web beacon scheme, which is why your e-mail program likely no longer displays included images. If you receive an HTML e-mail and see only red Xs where you would’ve expected images, then your e-mail program has most likely blocked images specifically to prevent the connection to the third party server. If you trust the sender, then you can unblock the images and view them in their full glory. If you have no idea who is sending you unsolicited e-mail, don’t unblock the images. Otherwise, you’ll confirm that you’re a live target.

Microsoft Silverlight is a cool plug-in for your browser that brings a whole new set of Web experiences to your computer such as “deep zoom,” object manipulation, high resolution graphics, and HD video just to name a few.

While Silverlight allows you to view a new breed of Web sites regardless of operating system or browser, it does intrude upon your computer in a few different ways. First, “application storage” is a feature of Silverlight which allows Silverlight Web sites to store data on your hard drive. Some instances of data being stored on your computer are similar to cookies where your custom settings are stored. Other instances are more like when your browser downloads images to your PC to make future page loads faster. For example, Silverlight applications loaded with high resolution features such as maps, games, or images may store content on your computer to provide you with better performance.

ADVERTISEMENT

Wow - Have you heard of the Lifelock yet? The CEO is so proud of his service that he’s shouting his SSN from the rooftops! That’s right

His name is Todd Davis

and his REAL social security number is 457-55-5462

Click the banner below to learn more …

Application storage starts off with low storage space quotas of just 1MG but Silverlight applications can request more quota space, which you must approve. Be careful approving “unlimited” quota space requests as you’re essentially allowing the Web site to store as much content as it wants on your computer’s hard drive.

Because many Silverlight applications take advantage of huge files, your hard drive could fill up quickly with unlimited quotas. In addition, even if you have not granted unlimited quotas, it won’t take long for your hard drive to become cluttered with dozens of smaller Silverlight application files - many of which you will never need.

To take control of Silverlight application storage, go to any Silverlight Web site such as Silverlight’s Showcase and right-click inside the Silverlight control. This brings up a small option that says, “Silverlight Configuration.” Click Silverlight Configuration and a small dialog box will appear. Click the Application Storage tab.

You will see a list of all Web sites that are storing content on your computer, how much is currently stored, and the Web site’s current quota. You can either highlight individual Web sites and delete the content individually or you can click the Delete All button. If you do not want any Web sites to store content on your hard drive, remove the checkmark next to Enable Application Storage.

In addition to allowing Web sites to store content on your hard drive, Silverlight also transmits computer-specific information from your computer to Microsoft and the Web sites that you visit such as IP address, hardware ID, browser, operating system, and other non-personally identifiable information. This is similar to the same information that your browser freely shares with Web sites. When in the Silverlight Configuration dialog box, take some time to read the privacy policy so that you are aware of exactly what is being collected.  

Whenever I use the Internet, my usage leaves traces of my visits on my hard drive even after I exit the browser. My computer automatically records and stores this data. Web tracks include all of the following: browser cache, browser history, cookies, address bar history, and autocomplete history.

Although this might seem innocents at first, and I might think that I don’t need to worry about it, I should be concerned. After all, anyone who gains access to my computer can look up all of the web pages that I have visited. They can easily discover every image or video that I have viewed using my computer along with all of the Web pages that I have ever visited.

ADVERTISEMENT

Wow - Have you heard of the Lifelock yet? The CEO is so proud of his service that he’s shouting his SSN from the rooftops! That’s right

His name is Todd Davis

and his REAL social security number is 457-55-5462

Click the banner below to learn more …

Just thinking about all of the important data that I have ever used when visiting specific websites is upsetting. Imagine all of the different usernames and passwords that someone else might be able to access from these web tracks. Examples if some of the data that is stored include the URLs that I have typed into my browser bars, the specific identifiers from every individual web page that I have visited, a record of the keywords that I have typed into search bars in my browsers and on web pages, and the information derived from the individual web pages. All of this data is stored on the computer.

Plus, do you know what is stored in the autocomplete history file? Personal information such as email addresses, account numbers, passwords, street addresses, phone numbers, and more are kept in this file. Coworkers, friends, and family members who borrow my computer for just a few minutes to check their email account or browse some website can easily retrieve this information. Plus, if they can do it, so can any spyware application that invades my computer. How much do I really want people to know about me?

At first I wondered why computers would be set up to retain all of this data. While some of this information might not include sensitive data, quite a bit of it does do so. However, the primary reason behind Web tracks is to enable quicker loading of Web pages whenever someone is surfing the Net.

In this rat race world where we have so little time to accomplish all of our goals and dreams, time is an important commodity. Of course, people are inclined to cut corners and save time where they can. But is it worth the risk of exposing some of all of our most sensitive personal data? Of course not! That’s why I whole heartedly recommend that computer users purchase a web track cleaning tool such as Paretologic’s Privacy Controls.

Paretologic’s Privacy Control doesn’t just delete all evidence of your web tracks, it shreds them so no one can ever find them. This application can permanently erase data from the following programs: Outlook, Kazaa, MSN Messenger, Microsoft Office, and Internet Explorer as well as many more.

The first time that I came across the acronym EULA, I wondered what it stood for simply because I was unfamiliar with it. Today, this acronym is becoming more widely spread and familiar to most Internet users. EULA refers to End User License Agreement. It’s the statement that we need to agree to in order to download software or use specific websites. If we don’t agree to the terms within the EULA, we will not be able to access the website or its software. Once most people realize this, they quickly click off the “yes” box whether they have read the EULA or not.

Even if you are tempted to pass up reading the End User License Agreement, you should still read it. I agree that it is all too easy to assume that it does not contain any worthwhile information. I would also have to agree that it often seems as though each End User License Agreement is the same as any other. After all, these paragraphs that seem to say something without actually saying anything all look the same and sound the same.

Nonetheless, we need to pay attention to every EULA that is attached to every website we visit. We shouldn’t blithely click off the box in front of the “yes,” agreeing to whatever terms are included in an End User License Agreement without actually reading what it says. I admit that it is tempting, especially when the EULA is a particularly long one. It is so much easier to simply click and make the box disappear. However, the EULA is a legal agreement. Once we click on the “yes,” we have agreed to whatever the EULA states within it- good or bad.

With all of the spyware that’s floating around in cyberspace today, reading the EULA becomes even more important. Some websites aren’t quite on the up and up and they include the right to perform various questionable actions within their EULAs. In particular, specific phrasing is included in some of these End User License Agreements that grants permission for the software vendor to install spyware as well as other types of detrimental installations. Some even prohibit you from using tools to remove the associated malicious program! Spyware is an undesirable presence that can disrupt your computer’s functioning, modify your operating system, and soak up memory resources.

This is why it is so important to read to the end of the EULA because that is where you are going to find the information that these websites don’t actually want you to see. Their EULAs start out innocently enough with basic comments, masking the End User License Agreement into one that is completely harmless.

The concept of anonymity on the Internet is a sliding scale. Can you make up a fake name, fake email address, and fake life story on a multitude of websites? Sure. But there is always one little tell, that pesky IP address permanently attached to all of your web activities. So how can you legitimately employ the “invisibility cloak” of IP address masking, and is it really necessary to prevent privacy attacks?

ADVERTISEMENT

Wow - Have you heard of the Lifelock yet? The CEO is so proud of his service that he’s shouting his SSN from the rooftops! That’s right

His name is Todd Davis

and his REAL social security number is 457-55-5462

Click the banner below to learn more …

First, most users do not need to worry about IP masking to protect personal files and computers from hackers. Why? Well, most elite hackers are not going to take the time and effort to break into personal computers because it isn’t worth the pay off in information or bragging rights. True threats to personal identity, or malware attacks use more legitimate ways of attacking computers, like email attachments or riders on legitimate downloads.

If you happen to frequent websites that are notorious for spyware and adware, IP address masking can help in the crusade against tracker cookies and keyloggers. However, many of these websites, like gaming and social networking sites rely on legitimate cookies to provide functionality and speed. Employing IP masking may unintentionally bar you from accessing these favorite sites altogether, or significantly hamper performance.

An IP address stands for Internet Protocol, and creates a virtual “location and identity” of your computer for data transfers. Data transfers, also called package transfers, are what make the Internet work. Most people rely on their Internet Service Provider (ISP) to assign an IP address. The only true way to hide this IP address from the world is to use a proxy service.

A proxy service allows you to login, and then surf the Internet using their IP address. There is a danger to this practice because while it will allow you to possibly override access restrictions based on your country or state location, as a user you are still responsible for your actions. Just because there is a way, doesn’t mean it’s legal. Using IP address masking to engage in illegal activities, download copyrighted material, or access websites legally barred from dealing with your country is not a safe way to get around laws and restrictions. Once traced back to the proxy service, a quick subpoena of user names is all it takes to follow the crumb trail back to you.

Another problem with proxy services for IP masking is it places an extraordinary amount of trust into one company by an individual. Proxy services act as a type of filter, and now there is a centralized location of all actions you take on the web. While most proxy service companies claim to not track their users’ online behavior, it may still know when you are using IP address masking to access areas you are not otherwise permitted to go.

Overall, if you cannot access a website due to your IP address, you really shouldn’t try to work around the restriction. Few websites employ htaccess (Hypertext Access) restriction files unless it is absolutely necessary for the management of the site. Online protection is more a reality with professional malware monitors like Paretologic’s security offerings than with IP address masking. The true threats to privacy are the openings granted to your computer from email and downloads, not someone attempting a difficult hack with your IP address information.

SURF THE WEB ANONYMOUSLY 

Never leave evidence of where you’ve been online!

GhostSurf Platinum is the Answer and now Includes the Entire Professional Privacy Suite from Tenebril

• Protect your privacy - The Privacy Control Center gives you anonymous, secure access to the internet
• Detect and remove Spyware - Spycatcher constantly monitors your computer for malicious software, spyware and hacker tools
• Personal Data Vault - A safe secure place to store all your sensitive data like documents, pictures, passwords and private web favorites
• Adarmor - Blocks all unwanted popups and in-page ads. You choose what you dont want to see!
• Trackscleaner - The most advanced technology to erase traces of your web surfing and general computer use

Download GhostSurf Platinum

Limited time offer - Buy now for only $29.95 (Never before offered this low!)

If you could only see my Internet searches, you’d be mighty surprised at what they reveal

Likewise, if I could only see your Internet searches, I might find out far more about you than you’d care to share. Your searches reveal all kinds of information about your interests, illnesses, shopping habits, political leanings, and more! In fact, your Internet searches can even give clues about where you live. And no, they are NOT private.

First, anyone with access to your computer can easily look at your Internet browsing history

The easiest way to see what Web sites you’ve been to is to enter “a” in the web browser’s address bar. This lists all URLs starting with “a.” Next, “b” lists all the Web sites you’ve been to starting with “b” and so on.

The Index.dat file is smarter than us all

Okay, you’re smart enough to disable AutoComplete for Web addresses (go to Internet Options, click the Content tab, click the Setting button next to AutoComplete, and remove the check mark next to Web addresses) and you know how to delete your Browsing history (Internet Options, General, Browsing History, Delete), but did you know that a hidden file remains on your computer containing a log of all Web sites ever visited? This is called the Index.dat file. Computer savvy snoops simply have to find this file and bingo! they have your complete Internet history including the URLs as well as your Internet search terms.

Even if no one else has access to your computer, your searches aren’t private. Spyware and adware programs often record this information, send it to a third party, and then serve up targeted pop-up ads based on your previous searches. For example, if you recently did a search for luxury handbags, you may find pop-up ads from Coach or eBags.

Search Engines have a Profile on you

Search engines also maintain huge databases with search terms that they occasionally make available to others. While personally identifiable information isn’t typically included, “profiles” are made. In an infamous AOL breach, search information was released. AOL had taken the precaution of removing the AOL user’s name and replacing it with a number. However, many people were later publically identified because their search histories provided enough clues.

For example, let’s say I have a search history that includes the following inquiries:

• Oprah’s book of the month club
• Caring for Siamese cats
• Apartments for singles in Des Moines, Iowa
• Librarian jobs in Des Moines
• Starbucks 5^th Street Des Moines hours
• Jacqueline Marie Johnson
• How to pick a OB/GYN
• AARP membership
• Investment advice for millionaires

What can you gather from such a profile?

Let’s see, could this be a single woman who lives in Des Moines? Looks like she loves books and is seeking a job as a librarian. She also appears to be wealthy senior who may be named Jacqueline Marie Johnson (people love to Google their own names). Jacqueline is perfect prey for a con artist. Plus, she frequents the Starbucks on 5^th street. In the wrong hands, a con artist could find this mystery woman based on her Internet search history.

Scary, isn’t it? 

Ghostsurf Platinum addresses many of these concerns. In addition, Ghostsurf Platinum offers a full-feature set of “anonymous” Internet search abilities. This is a very powerful suite of products that you should download too!

Limited time offer - Buy now for only $29.95

Tenebril Product Mini-Reviews

Feedback

Do you have experience with any of these Tenebril products? Please provide your comments below …