Surfing the Web Anonymously

Surfing the Web Anonymously – Questions to Ask

When you surf the web it is possible to learn information about you
even when you don’t want to advertise who you are. This is true even
if your system contains no virus or malware software. Specifically
information that is easily available online includes your IP address,
your country (and often more location information based on IP
address), what computer system you are on, what browser you use, your
browser history, and other information. It gets worse. People can
get your computer’s name and even find out your name if your machine
supports programs like finger or identd. Also, cookies can track your
habits as you move from machine to machine.

How do people get this basic information about you?

When you visit another web site, information about you can be
retrieved. Basically, information is intercepted and used by others
to track your Internet activities.

How do you stop this from happening?

First of all, it is possible to surf the web anonymously and thereby
stop leaving a trail for others to find. Note that this is not fool-
proof, but it makes it much harder for people to know who you are.
There are products called anonymous proxy servers that help protect
you. The anonymous proxy server replaces your Internet address for
its own. This has the effect of hiding your IP address and making it
much harder for people to track you.

How do I get an anonymous proxy server?

There are many vendors who sell anonymous proxy servers. There are
also free proxy servers available to you. Two such products are
ShadowSurf and Guardster. Guardster (http://www.guardster.com/)
offers various services for anonymous and secure access to the web,
some paid as well as a free service. ShadowSurf
(http://www.shadowsurf.com/) ShadowSurf provides anonymous surfing at
their site for free. Go to it and you will find a box to enter a URL
that you want no one to track. There are many others, but here are
two that are frequently used.

Another interesting product, given the recent news about the Google
search engine filtering its findings for the Chinese government, is
Anonymizer (http://www.anonymizer.com). This company, among others,
recently (Feb 1st, 2006) pressed that it “is developing a new anti-
censorship solution that will enable Chinese citizens to safely
access the entire Internet filter free”
(http://www.anonymyzer.com/consumer/media/press_releases/02012006.html
).

Does an anonymous proxy server make you 100% safe?

No. Still, you are much better off if you use such technology.

What other things should I be concerned about when trying to keep my
private information private?

Three other items come to mind when trying to keep your information
private. First, you can use an encrypted connection to hide your
surfing. This article does not go into detail on this, but search the
web and you will find a lot of information on this. Secondly, delete
cookies after each session. Third, you can configure your browser to
remove JavaScript, Java, and active content. This actually leads to
limitations, so you need to think about the cost/benefit of this
course of action.

Anything else?

Wishing you happy and safe surfing!