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The Truth About Hiding Your Tracks On The Internet
k, ok, I know you've seen clean up your personal computer!
them. All those pop up To me this is very important
windows claiming that because it's easier for people to
"You're being watched!" or banner get your computer's Internet
ads saying "Your computer is records, via hacking, tracking or
under surveillance!" And all you outright theft, than it is for
need to do is buy their product them to get any other type of
and your computer's visbility Internet records.
will disappear from the Internet.
Well, to state the obvious, Want proof? Just ask Gary
that's just not true. Glitter, a 1960's pop star who
took his personal computer in to
We have to give those companies have a repair done. The shop
some credit though - they are found both pictures and other
giving you half of the truth. If evidence of illegal Internet
they were giving you the whole activity and called the cops!
story, what they'd be saying is Glitter spent time in jail
that their software will make because he didn't "clean up his
your surfing tracks disappear act" before he took the computer
from your personal computer. Not in for a repair.
from the Internet.
The other half of this issue and
Now, with that said, don't just the one that is a bit more
blow off these products saying complicated to address is made up
"if they can't get rid of all my of all the records established
personal surfing records then and held by your ISP (Internet
what good are they?" These Service Provider), Internet
products actually address the routers (computer "traffic cops"
more important half of the issue. that route Internet requests
The effective ones really do around the web) and website
hosting servers. 1 - You sign on to your ISP.
These computers are completely 2 - Your ISP assigns you an IP
outside your scope of influence. (Internet Protocol) address. An
You can't just call up your ISP IP address is a series of numbers
and tell them to delete all that tell the computer where you
records that pertain to your are connecting from and who to
account! Once they are done send information to.
laughing, they will let you know
that to do that they would have 3 - You type in a web address in
to cull through literally your browser and send that
millions of records for any given request to your ISP.
day to pull out your two or three
hundred records. The effort would 4 - Your ISP logs the request,
be enormous and they don't have along with your assigned IP
the resources to do this kind of address and then goes out to the
work. Internet to request the web page.
Besides, these logs are used 5 - The ISP's request goes
mostly to trouble shoot server / through multiple routers, each
router errors and to help stop one logging who made the request
hacker abuse and other kinds of and forwarding on the request to
DOS (Denial of Service) attacks. the next until it gets to the
server hosting the web page.
But you can affect the
information that gets stored in 6 - The host server logs the
these logs. To understand this request and sends the information
you need to know how the process back out, often through a
works. Here are the basic steps: completely different set of
routers, each one again logging
the request and passing it on to proxy type service that takes
the next until it gets back to advantage of SSL and encryption
your ISP. to keep your surfing tracks to
yourself.
7 - Your ISP looks up in it's log
who made the initial request and All requests made to them through
sends it on to you. SSL are encrypted so even your
ISP can't read what you
8 - You get the page, a temporary requested. This secure connection
copy is stored on your hard is the same type that ecommerce
drive. sites use to protect your credit
card data. Then all requests they
9 - You click on a link or enter make for you reference their
in a new web address and the computers as the originator of
process starts all over again! the request so all the routers
and web host servers see is their
So for every request you make to IP address! Your personal and or
your ISP, not only does that browser information is blocked
request get stored on your from the Internet.
computer, it gets stored on a
number of other computers as So, if you really want to protect
well! Comforting right? your privacy, give the snoopers a
one - two punch. Clean up your
Well there is a way to hide, or act by using one of the history /
mask would be a better term, your cookie clean up tools available
web surfing activities. You need for download AND surf through one
to use an anonymous surfing tool. of the anonymous surfing
Sites like Anonymizer.com or providers out on the net.
the-cloak.com offer an online
About the Author:
Michael Ameye has been developing web sites since 1995. He started writing about online privacy issues to answer questions from family, friends and co-workers. Visit http://www.pssonline.info to sign up for PSS Online - a privacy, safety, and security ezine.
Read more articles by: Mike Ameye
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
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