# Is online Privacy truly gone?



## orbital (May 23, 2012)

+

I keep a tight computer,

I'v used Firefox for awhile now, 8 years at least
Cookies are Off unless I need them for something
Zero online cache allowed
Current Adblock Plus 

I'm particularly anal about Local Shared Objects and not allowing anything stored,,, especially 3rd party.
I use CCleaner everyday


****So here's the deal;
I was just looking at a cassette for my bike on Amazon yesterday, and today I get an email from Amazon about the *exact* cassette I was looking at.
*(no, I didn't add to cart & no, I was NOT logged in)*


To put this as mildly as possibly, I was not impressed!!!


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## csshih (May 23, 2012)

well, you gave them your email - so you've made an account! I assume you were logged in, then? 

C


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## EZO (May 23, 2012)

You don't mention whether or not you were logged into Amazon at the time and left out some important details about your personal situation with your computer but it ultimately doesn't matter. You've brought up an important topic.

As you've discovered, it becoming increasingly difficult to preserve your privacy online. This can only be accomplished, if it can be accomplished at all if people proactively take steps to prevent tracking.

Most average people I talk to are completely oblivious to the fact that tracking is going on at all and would be astonished to learn how rampant it is and what lengths corporations are going to to identify *individual users* and invade your privacy. Some people are vaguely aware of tracking and they know a little about cookies but don't give the matter much thought. Any given commercial web page can have literally dozens of tracking schemes in play all at once not including cookies!

It is very good that you are being careful about Local Shared Objects (LSOs). If you are not already using it, the browser plug-in BetterPrivacy is vital in this regard. It will make managing this problem much easier.

Check out Ghostery , a browser plug-in that enables its users to easily detect and control web bugs, that are objects embedded in a web page, invisible to the user, that allow the collection of data on the user's browsing habits. You can download it here.

One vital tool is NoScript an extension that provides important security as well as privacy protection. Many would be amazed to learn about how many individual scripts are running on most web pages they visit. While some of these scripts just enable certain functionalities, many serve tracking and other unwelcomed purposes.

Another important privacy add-on for Firefox and other browsers is Adblock Plus that provides filters for various embedded elements that are designed to feed you ads based on your habits and other insidious stuff like collecting information about your individual browsing habits and preferences.

An even scarier tracking method that has been under the radar for sometime now is called Browser Fingerprinting that can identify your unique web browser _*without*_ cookies. Check out Panopticlick from The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) to learn more about this and to check your computer's uniqueness. If you've never heard of Browser Fingerprinting start by reading this article in PC World. (This is an older article written before fingerprinting became as wide spread as it now appears to be.)

Another consideration is whether you have a Static (fixed) IP address usually found on cable systems or a Dynamic IP address (changes when you disconnect and reconnect) typical of dial-up or DSL. Obviously if you always have the same IP address all the time, your computer will always be identifiable.

Finally, the New York Times published a good article a few weeks ago titled, How to Muddy Your Tracks on the Internet - well worth reading.

This is a huge, important topic that is only touched on here and deserves wider attention. Thanks, orbital for posting about it.


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## orbital (May 23, 2012)

^ 

hiya Craig,,,,not logged in


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## netprince (May 23, 2012)

You dont have to be logged in to be carrying around a tracking cookie. Cookies can be stored everywhere, not just the browser (html5, flash and/or URL for example). I would have to agree with your subject, online and privacy dont go together.


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## kristine (May 23, 2012)

Hi, I am just new in this forum. For me, I believe there is still privacy. For example, there are sites that allows us to go on public or not. If we choose to keep it private then it is safe, but for public then we know that our Privacy is truly gone. If we don't trust the sites, it is better not to even click it. Always think before you click.


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## blasterman (May 23, 2012)

Google 'Super Cookie'.


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## Swede74 (May 23, 2012)




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## EZO (May 23, 2012)

blasterman said:


> Google 'Super Cookie'.



Super Cookies is simply another term for the previously mentioned LSOs - Local Shared Object. They are also known as Flash Cookies. (This excellent link will explain what they are and show you how to set Flash Player not to accept them.)

The most effective and convenient method for managing, observing, counting and eliminating Flash Cookies _aka_ Super Cookies _aka_ Local Shared Objects is the browser plug-in BetterPrivacy which you can download HERE.


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## 127.0.0.1 (May 23, 2012)

...comment deleted, what I wanted to say could get too complex to discuss on a forum. really needs a week-long class.


summary: there is no complete privacy, never was, and never will be. legal entites always have access to enough info
to physically locate you. your data might be encrypted but your location cannot be hidden 100%


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## HotWire (May 23, 2012)

Tracking cookies relay information quickly. For example. I bought an LED to replace the burned out bulb in my car's radio display. Within minutes six or seven companies that sell LEDs sent me email! I reset my browser almost daily, but if the tracking cookie is there (& it is) information your information is out. Some websites also sell/exchange information with their "associates." I keep third party cookies turned off. Cookies are set even though you are not logged on. Regularly deleting cookies means you have to log on to your favorite sites again, but it is helpful.


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## orbital (May 23, 2012)

+

Welcome to the Machine......


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## EZO (May 23, 2012)

Another privacy tool that's been getting good reviews is Abine's free Do Not Track Plus which you can download HERE.

Even if you don't download this free tool their short video "Do Not Track Plus Explained" gives an excellent (although somewhat simplified) overview of how (some) tracking works on the internet and why it is a bad thing.


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## PapaLumen (May 23, 2012)

Dont ever log-in to google if you worry about privacy. Its amazing how far it goes.


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## blasterman (May 23, 2012)

Actually the best method I've found for eliminating the problem on Windows platforms is to re-direct all temp and cache locations to a RAM drive, which then gets vaporized when the machine is rebooted regardless of file system exploits and rights issues. I personally don't trust 3rd party *anything* to handle these type of problems because if that plug-in or application has access to the API calls involved then likely so does malicious software. Given the benefit of the doubt I totally agree Firefox is better at handling these objects than IE is though. Even with IE 9 I'm finding the same legacy issue with ~temp internet files not being scrubbed when set with a GPO, and other annoyances that go back a decade. Likely why I'm typing this with Linux right now.

Thinking about there's no reason that a modern browser would require cached anything. I have a sneaky suspicion there's a law enforcement angle to this.


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## JemR (May 23, 2012)

Thanx for the advise EZO on BetterPrivacy. I have been a long time user of Firefox, already had Adblock Plus & NoScript. BetterPrivacy is on my laptop now!

127.0.0.1 Read with interest your thread on Facebook. Sorry for my trivial posts. Got a bee in my bonnet about the smartphone app. Anyway, The comments you deleted in this thread were they in reference to “Sand box” I have kaspersky and that allows for browser sand box. Is that any good? or just hype or something else entirely.


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## EZO (May 23, 2012)

JemR said:


> Thanx for the advise EZO on BetterPrivacy. I have been a long time user of Firefox, already had Adblock Plus & NoScript. BetterPrivacy is on my laptop now!



You're welcome! I would definitely encourage you to explore Ghostery and consider adding it to your add-on and plug-in arsenal.

Here is some info about Ghostery from their web site:


_Ghostery sees the invisible web - tags, web bugs, pixels and beacons. Ghostery tracks the trackers and gives you a roll-call of the ad networks, behavioral data providers, web publishers, and other companies interested in your activity. __After showing you who's tracking you, Ghostery also gives you a chance to learn more about each company it identifies. How they describe themselves, a link to their privacy policies, and a sampling of pages where we've found them are just a click away.__Ghostery allows you to block scripts from companies that you don't trust, delete local shared objects, and even block images and __iframes. Ghostery puts your web privacy back in your hands._


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## JemR (May 23, 2012)

Just installed Ghostery. Going through the config walkthrough now. i may be some time!!! Thanx again:thumbsup:

Update:
I'm finding these cafe treads more interesting than the flashlight ones at the moment. Must remember i want a new flashlight some time soon!!!!!!


2nd Update: 
For those thinking of installing Ghostery in firefox. It installs actually very quickly. It leaves an icon in the address toolbar. Hover over with the curser and it tells you if there is any trackers on the web page you are on. CPF=0, Ebay frontpage=1 Youtube frontpage =1. Adjustment can be made via "tools" in the menu bar or clicking on the icon.

For those thinking of installing BetterPrivacy in firefox. Also very quick install. This appears when closing the browser telling you that it is deleting the previously mentioned LSO's and how many.

These are just my initial first 10 minute observations. Others can tell you far, far, far more. Read :bow: EZO's posts and links !!! Visit mozilla Add-ons etc...etc.. Stay Safe People


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## EZO (May 23, 2012)

In the Options & Help section of BetterPrivacy's preference pane you can opt to add "Flash Cookies" to the list of deleted items in Firefox's "Clear Recent History" drop down menu selection. If you then select the "Clear history when Firefox closes" option in the Privacy section of Firefox preferences it will clear everything you select on the list including standard cookies as well as Super Cookies when you quit. I find clearing the browser, thus having to log back into sites like CPF that require a password to be a small price to pay for added privacy.


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## eh4 (May 23, 2012)

What I'm usually looking for is fastest browsing, most screen real estate and browser staying up on a low power netbook with lots of tabs open... I'm using Chrome. 
I would like to be tracked as little as possible but the few times I've messed with privacy apps they seem to have slowed me down a bit.
I would be very interested in light weight privacy apps that don't slow page loading down or bother me unless I look at them, a little multi-colored icon in the corner would be perfect, if it's yellow or red I'd go ahead and and take a look.
Any suggestions?

Learning to save cookies and all other bugs and detritus to a ram disk sounds like a great trick. 
Likewise, learning to configure a virtual machine that loads up fresh and new every session with dynamic IP and some other random costumery, while still saving bookmarks and all -seems ideal.

BTW, I do watch the targeted adds and try and ascertain what they're watching and what they're after, friendly little reminders... "None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe that they are free." -Goethe

​


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## JemR (May 24, 2012)

eh4 said:


> I would like to be tracked as little as possible but the few times I've messed with privacy apps they seem to have slowed me down a bit.
> I would be very interested in light weight privacy apps that don't slow page loading down or bother me unless I look at them, a little multi-colored icon in the corner would be perfect, if it's yellow or red I'd go ahead and and take a look.
> Any suggestions?



I may be able to help you somewhat on this bit, part of it maybe? I use WOT (Web of Trust) www.mywot.com. You may well already have tried it/use this it is quite popular. It's a browser extension that rates web sites by using traffic light icons next to search results, from google for example. And also has an icon in the address toolbar which rates the page you are on. Similar to McAfee SiteAdvisor in many ways (also very good). In WOT's case user's help partly compile the ratings from good or bad experiences of sites. If a site is harvesting info, uses (who know) will rate that site low as privacy is one of the four rating criteria. I will now “know” after adding extensions discussed in this tread. You can also type a URL into a search box on their web site front page if you don't want to add the extension and you have concerns about a site. Not sure if the browser extension slows searches down much (must a tiny bit). I find it a useful initial filter for dodgy sites.


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## EZO (May 26, 2012)

There seem to be a lot of misconceptions about how online tracking actually works or just how rife and insidious it is. While schemes like running ones computer on a ram disc or inside a virtual machine might wipe the slate clean when you reboot your computer, this does little or nothing to prevent you from being tracked while you are online. This is especially true if you use services such as Yahoo, Facebook, Photobucket, MySpace, eBay and Google products of any kind but it is widespread pretty much wherever you go online. Obviously, if you log on to any of these sites you are being tracked but logging off doesn't necessarily help you. Even dumping your cookies every time you go from site to site may not help and most people wouldn't go to this amount of trouble anyway. 

The problem is that the whole business of tracking is cumulative. You are a profile! So even if you manage to dodge tracking periodically, as soon as an ad network or market research or behavioral tracking company figures out it is you then you are being tracked again from where they left off. The trackers are sending data about you to multiple companies and data bases simultaneously. You don't even have to be logged onto a site for it to happen. The schemes and technologies being deployed for tracking purposes are increasing in complexity and number at an astonishing rate. Individual browser fingerprinting, as previously mentioned is only one example of a technology that makes disposing of cookies fruitless. And cookies are only a part of it. Much of it happens in real time. Third-party trackers using beacon technology can match the data they collect about you in real time with other databases containing geolocation, financial, medical and other information in order to expand your profile to predict your age, gender, zip code, income, marital status, parenthood, home ownership, as well as unique interests, purchasing history and ultimately to connect this data to your actual identity. If you visit other websites that work with the same ad networks that control the trackers you picked up on say, Dictionary.com, the original tracking file will take note of the connections. As this continues, your profile will become more and more specific to your interests as well as enriched by any information you willingly share with the participating websites. So, if you're seeing more and more advertisements that seem oddly tailored to you, it's probably not a coincidence. 

OK, let's say that I've completely cleared my computer of any cookies, super cookies, web beacons, trackers, history and cache files and go back online fresh as a baby. If I log onto Facebook, check my Gmail, do a Google search...whatever, as soon as a tracking technology discovers I'm back online it says, Hey, There's EZO! And from that point forward I am being tracked again from site to site, with every click, search, sometimes keystrokes, mouse hovers and so on and so forth being recorded to one of many profiles being created about me by numerous tracking and monitoring companies. While most of these outfits speak in vague terms about, "anonymous data in the aggregate", it becomes a trivial matter to identify you personally as these profiles are being built. They want to know who you are and everything about you. That's the whole point!

In some cases using beacon technology (sometimes in concert with cookies), *your keystrokes are being logged as you type, believe it or not! *A simple demonstration of this is when you type a search in Google or Bing and it starts predicting and feeding you possible search terms as you are still typing. In fact, it starts presenting you with search terms _instantaneously_ as soon as you type a single letter! Think about this! Do you think this technology isn't being used to monitor your keystrokes elsewhere without showing it to you in real time, or not making you aware that it is happening at all? Do you think only Google or Bing use this technique? Incidentally, at least on Google, instant key stroke logging keeps functioning even if you disable cookies, web bugs and beacons and practically everything else! (Edit: you can disable this kind of keystroke logging if you disable Javascript globally in your browser preferences but you would be giving up a lot of other web functionality.) (Edit #2: Apparently, NoScript will block keystroke logging on Bing but not on Google.)

Of course, Google and Yahoo scan and "read" your personal email. You know that don't you? This is in part how they decide what ads to serve up to you. Do you really believe they ignore who you are and only go by the general content of your message? They not only scan your email and know your name and email address because you are a registered member but they are scanning, recording and analyzing the data along with names and email addresses from messages from people you correspond with who are not signed up with Gmail, or Yahoo Mail who may not wish to have their messages scanned and have their names and email addresses recorded into a database. At least it could be said that you agreed to the Terms of Service (TOS) when you signed up for your account but the people you correspond with certainly didn't. You should also be aware that messages sent or received via Gmail type systems contain beacons (web bugs) with unique identifiers that report back that you've opened the message, the date and time you've read it and other details, like if you've forwarded the message and your IP address. Every subsequent time the email message is displayed can also send information back to the sender.

Did you know that if you go to Dictionary.com to look up a word, the site instantly places 234 trackers on your computer? It's true! The top 50 websites in the United States install an average of 64 individual trackers to visitor computers with little to no disclosure. Some websites among the top 50 exceed 100 trackers. The Wall Street Journal published an important series of articles called "What They Know" that would be well worth taking a look at. The WSJ also published a worthwhile blog posting on the same subject with an interactive graphic showing how tracking works and how pervasive it is. I would encourage anyone reading this post who is concerned about this issue to take a look and spend some time with the interactive graphic. This is where I learned how many trackers Dictionary.com places on peoples computers. You will find it HERE. Ironically, this very page at the Wall Street Journal is full of trackers itself but to their journalistic credit, they at least put themselves on the list. (60 trackers) 

There are two basic types of trackers, "first-party" trackers, which transfer benign text files to users' computers in order to enable websites to remember user information, such as items they've placed in their shopping cart or field data for forms that have already been filled out. This is how you stay logged into CPF, for example. Then there are "third-party" trackers, which also transfer files to users' computers but these are in order to gather data about much more than just their session on the tracker's site of origin. While first-party trackers are useful to users of individual websites and limited in scope to very particular data, third-party trackers, unlimited in reach, are pushing the boundaries of privacy and ethics online. While the word installation may connote visible, mechanical processes that slow things down or conjure images of slow progress bars in your mind, the actual process of placing trackers on to visitor computers is much faster, nearly instantaneous in fact, and for most users, completely invisible. The fact that it goes unnoticed by the majority of web users and that most people have only a vague sense that something so pervasive and intrusive is happening is what makes it so effective and insidious. The technology is highly complex, especially on the server side and is often proprietary so that it is difficult for even professional observers to understand how it functions. 

For the time being, the only defense available is to _attempt_ to prevent being tracked in the first place and this is where the tools mentioned previously in this thread are most valuable.


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## EZO (Jun 3, 2012)

Here is an interesting TED talk presentation by Gary Kovacs, CEO of the Mozilla Corporation where he discusses the explosion of, and his displeasure with, the largely unregulated 39 billion dollar internet behavioral tracking industry.
In the talk, he expresses the idea that it's your right to know what data is being collected about you, by whom and how it affects your online life. He unveils a new experimental Firefox add-on called Collusion that will help do just that using a unique graphical interface. You can download it HERE.


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## LEDninja (Jun 3, 2012)

A lot of websites automatically track what pages you go to. Especially those that need you to log in. Now they are storing that information.

-----

There is a new tracker this year. If you just browse CPF you will find your browser has been tricked into sending out info like this:

https://s-static.ak.facebook.com/co...gment#xd_sig=f16d695b8&&transport=postmessage

http://static.ak.facebook.com/conne...gment#xd_sig=f16d695b8&&transport=postmessage

If you do not want facebook to collect your browsing history stay away from pages that have a 'login with facebook' button. Such as the CPF main page. The 'Like facebook' button does the same thing.
I have 'Fixed Lighting', 'General Flashlight Discussion', 'LED flashlights', 'Cafe' bookmarked. Avoid going in through the CPF main page now.

You can also prevent facebook collecting your info if you turn off 'Enable Javascript' but most websites don't work properly with Javascript disabled.


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## EZO (Jun 3, 2012)

Firstly, nobody's web browser is being "tricked" into doing anything. The pages simply have additional functionality built into them. Also, while most web sites do record and store basic information about your visit as they always have, such as your IP address, web browser info, screen resolution, general location, operating system, where visitors are coming from and going, etc., the real issue here is not that sites are storing anything they haven't before but that you are being tracked....."stalked" is probably a more accurate word, as you go from site to site by independent entities and networks, often in collusion with the specific web sites you are visiting (hence the name of Mozilla's tracker tracking add-on, Collusion). The solution is to disable the harmful, intrusive technologies that allow the tracking to function with as little disruption to your usual web browsing as possible.

There is absolutely no reason to avoid visiting certain pages such as ones with a "like Facebook" button or a "login with Facebook" button. If you use the browser add-ons mentioned previously in this thread you will gain almost complete control over what functionality you will allow on any given web site you visit. So, for example, instead of disabling JavaScript completely in your browser, use NoScript to control which particular scripts you wish to allow or dis-allow. Use Ghostery to prevent various tracker technologies such as web bugs, tags, beacons and certain scripts from functioning and use BetterPrivacy to eliminate Super Cookies. Be careful about how and when you allow cookies to function, perhaps only allowing them on sites you need to log into. Clear your _entire_ browser history, including cookies on a regular basis, at least after each browsing session, at a minimum. Also, use the Ad Block Plus add-on. Another option is Do Not Track Plus. (Be careful about employing too many similar anti-tracking tools at the same time as they can interfere with one another. For example, Do Not Track Plus works fine but has been known to cause problems when used on top of other add-ons such as Ghostery and BetterPrivacy.)

There is another recently introduced privacy tool - TrackerBlock 2.2 from PrivacyChoice.org that provides cookie blocking and deletion, opt out cookies for hundred of companies and HTML 5 Control which shows you which web sites are using HTML 5 to store data on your computer and lets you delete it. I have no experience with this add-on but it is seems worth exploring.

LEDninja - Here is a screenshot of Ghostery at work blocking the Facebook links and scripting that are of concern to you on the CPF main page and another screenshot of additional Facebook plug-ins being blocked elsewhere. Other embedded Facebook and Twitter links and such can be disabled using NoScript.
















BTW, CPF engages in perhaps the most minimal tracking it needs for basic functionality and we should thank Greta for that. 
Here is the Ghostery menu for THIS page.


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## EZO (Jun 5, 2012)

So far, this thread has primarily revolved around the issue of online tracking by behavioral monitoring firms and ad networks that occurs when you surf the web. There is another important and often overlooked major piece of the internet privacy puzzle that goes hand in hand with ad network profiling and behavioral tracking that has even greater implications and in certain ways more serious threats to your personal privacy. SEARCH! 

Every time you use Google or any other search engine to search for a topic online your search query is being recorded and those search terms along with associated key words and other detailed information about you such as your IP address and User agent are transmitted to the web sites you end up visiting as a result of your searching. More importantly, search engines like Google are compiling huge databases of highly detailed profiles on individual users based on your search histories! This is especially true if you are _logged_ into any search based web sites like Yahoo and Google. If you are logged onto Facebook or Gmail or Yahoo, do a search, click a like button, post to Twitter, watch a YouTube video, click a link to purchase a product, view a Google doc or whatever, Google (and Facebook, Yahoo etc.) is compiling a personal dossier about YOU! When you search for something private, you are sharing that private search not only with your search engine, but also with all the sites that you clicked on (for that search). This information can identify you directly along with your location. So when you do that private search, about, say a medical or mental health or financial issue not only can those other sites know your search terms, but they can also know that _you_ searched it. And as explained previously in this thread, even when you log back out, you are still being tracked and monitored unless you take steps to protect your privacy. On many occasions Google has provided individual search profiles to government agencies without due process. Google has received thousands of US Government requests for user data and has complied with 94% of requests.

An important aspect of the loss of search privacy, personal profiling and search relevancy has become known as Search Bubbling aka Filter Bubbling. It has been conclusively shown that different people entering the IDENTICAL SEARCHES in Google are being delivered DIFFERENT RESULTS based on their previous search histories and personal profiles. If you are a Progressive left wing environmental type you are fed related material; if you are a Conservative right wing Christian, you are fed material that Google's algorithms think are what you want to see. If you are of a particular ethnic group or have a particular hobby, enjoy a particular kind of food or literature or music, etc, etc., then that is what you will see. You are being placed in a BUBBLE! This is being foisted on the public in the name of convenience and helpfulness and to sell you products. The problem here is that you are _only_ being offered _what you already know_. You are not being shown opposing points of view or being offered the opportunity to discover new things or learn of new styles of music or areas of interest you might otherwise benefit from that are outside your realm. In the scheme of things, this is not a good thing and you are giving yourself over to large corporations deciding what information is available to you.

Many folks are not happy about this and are taking steps to do something about it. There are some highly effective alternative search engines that have entered the picture and if your privacy and search freedoms are of concern to you I recommend that you have a look at them out. These new search engines DO NOT record your searches. They DO NOT record your IP address. They DO NOT profile you. They proactively protect your privacy. The result is that when you do a search and click on a link you are not transmitting your search to other websites or to ad networks and your searches will provide more diverse results since you are not being profiled. Check them out!

The privacy protecting search engines are:
*DuckDuckGo*. Be sure to read their privacy policy page.
*Startpage* - Their privacy policy page is HERE.
*Ixquik* - This is the sister page to Startpage

One of the key figures bringing attention to the Filter Bubble phenomenon is Eli Pariser. His interesting and enlightening TED talk on this subject is well worth 9 minutes of your time if these kind of issues are important to you.


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## eh4 (Jun 10, 2012)

Great contributions EZO, 
Well worth repeated, slow reading with pencil and paper, Thanks.


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## EZO (Jun 12, 2012)

A little review here for the folks who don't like to read longer posts and to make the previously suggested privacy tools (and a few other ones) more readily accessible.........Let's go back to Dictionary.com, one of the previously mentioned sites from the Wall Street Journal tracking exposé. Out of the 234 trackers it installs onto users' machines, only 11 of them are first-party trackers. That leaves 223 third-party trackers, all with unique agendas. When a third-party tracker is downloaded by a computer, it assigns that machine with a unique identification number (something like "4c681zs2873...") stored inside a cookie associated with the web browser being used. So, if you've visited Dictionary.com recently, (or any of thousands of others) *it's likely that those trackers are running on your machine right now, gathering data about you by observing your web browsing session*—*not just the pages you view on Dictionary.com, but all sites you visit with that browser*. If the tracker is using a technology called a "beacon," _*it can even record your keystrokes*_*!* This is only ONE of many entities and networks that are probably watching you right now.

Really, think about that for a moment! If a tracker can record every site you visit and the things you type—search queries, instant messages or emails using web-based systems, comments, etc.—it can quickly assemble a very thorough and accurate profile about *you*. It is worse than just profiling you; they are SPYING on you! These techniques are unethical, potentially illegal, even possibly unconstitutional and downright creepy!
*
Privacy Tools:* *Use them!*

And be sure to have a look at the excellent privacy protecting search engines that do not track you or record your searches - *DuckDuckGo* and *StartPage*.



 

 Adblock Plus Blocks ads. Firefox | Chrome 

 AdBlock Blocks ads. Safari | Chrome | Opera 

 AdSweep Blocks ads. Opera | Chrome 

 Beef Taco No ad network tracking. Firefox 

 Disconnect No tracking from major sites. Chrome | Firefox | Safari

 



 Ghostery No third-party tracking





NoScript  Security and Privacy Tools





Do Not Track Plus Stops Secret Tracking of your web browsing







BetterPrivacy No Flash Cookies aka LSOs aka Super Cookies






Mozilla Collusion Allows you to see all the third parties that are tracking your movements across the Web


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## orbital (Jun 12, 2012)

*^^^^^^^^^

EZO, I'll go ahead and speak for many people to say Thank you 
for all your work on this*.

There is nothing,, nothing more unAmerican to me, than our privacy being eroded by special interests groups 
& the endlessly overused "for National Security" reasons.

...written by me


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## Launch Mini (Jun 12, 2012)

Here is a "fun" music video from a number of years ago, thought it would be fitting for this post.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YvAYIJSSZY

Sorry, don't know how to embed it easily


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## EZO (Jun 12, 2012)

Thanks for your nice comments orbital, eh4 and JemR. And thanks orbital for posting about this subject in the first place so I could get on my soapbox about it. 
One of this biggest problems with this issue is that most people don't even know it is happening, so my hope is that as more folks do become aware of it and realize the negative long term consequences, perhaps people will start demanding their privacy.


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## orbital (Jun 12, 2012)

+

Everyone who uses Twitter is allowing every keystroke to be collected & shared with a Third Party partner
who then has the right to sell that information.

_*Trend on *_you twitts


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## LloydV (Jun 13, 2012)

EZO said:


> Thanks for your nice comments orbital, eh4 and JemR. And thanks orbital for posting about this subject in the first place so I could get on my soapbox about it.
> One of this biggest problems with this issue is that *most people don't even know it is happening*, so my hope is that as more folks do become aware of it and realize the negative long term consequences, perhaps people will start demanding their privacy.



that is fundamentally why it's very hard to rein in. there's a lot of users for data miners to track and exploit, which makes it a lucrative undertaking for them. if all (or most) of the users are averse to it, it may be different.

then again, there are probably dozens of people who go online for the first time everyday.


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## Tim B (Jun 16, 2012)

How well to virtual private networks protect you? I mean the kind you subscribe to and use on you home system like VyperVPN or HideMyAss or other similar ones. I know these mainly function to hide your IP address kind of like a proxy server does but how are they effective in other ways or are they not worth the trouble?


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## Sub_Umbra (Jun 16, 2012)

Privacy is a small moving target. Even if our machines are *perfect* we are all still subject to traffic analysis. I like custom remastered LiveCDs and LiveDVDs from obscure Linux distros. My OSs *all* run from ram. Any attacker would have to get in but any changes made will only be in ram as the live optical disks are finalized and cannot be changed in any way. When I want to buy on-line I reboot back to a pristine system.

I haven't had an OS installed on any of my personal boxes in years.


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## smarkum (Aug 3, 2012)

what are our options for email if we are a gmail user?


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## gadget_lover (Aug 3, 2012)

I'm the exception. I spent 30 years in the computer field, several of those in data security for a couple of fortune 500 companies.

It is my opinion that for the average person, the tracking is neither nefarious nor damaging. Sometimes it's the only way to do business. Other times it just pays the web site's bills for what you are getting for free.

Like all things, it can be abused. And it will be abused. The question is always whether you get more value than harm from the transaction.

Daniel


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## blasterman (Aug 3, 2012)

True....

In the meantime I'm just glad Derek Jeter isn't having a sex change.


----------



## fisk-king (Aug 4, 2012)

Great post. Just about 80% of the tools you listed I use for firefox. Another one I would like to add is HTTPS Everywhere from Electronic Frontier Foundation. It can be used for Firefox and Chrome. 

If anyone out there would like to up their privacy even more I would suggest researching onion routing (Tor Project) and i2P networking. Alot of individuals in countries where internet is censored (e.g. Iran, Egypt, China etc.) use these networks alot in order to gain access to info their gov't have censored. 




EZO said:


> A little review here for the folks who don't like to read longer posts and to make the previously suggested privacy tools (and a few other ones) more readily accessible.........Let's go back to Dictionary.com, one of the previously mentioned sites from the Wall Street Journal tracking exposé. Out of the 234 trackers it installs onto users' machines, only 11 of them are first-party trackers. That leaves 223 third-party trackers, all with unique agendas. When a third-party tracker is downloaded by a computer, it assigns that machine with a unique identification number (something like "4c681zs2873...") stored inside a cookie associated with the web browser being used. So, if you've visited Dictionary.com recently, (or any of thousands of others) *it's likely that those trackers are running on your machine right now, gathering data about you by observing your web browsing session*—*not just the pages you view on Dictionary.com, but all sites you visit with that browser*. If the tracker is using a technology called a "beacon," _*it can even record your keystrokes*_*!* This is only ONE of many entities and networks that are probably watching you right now.
> 
> Really, think about that for a moment! If a tracker can record every site you visit and the things you type—search queries, instant messages or emails using web-based systems, comments, etc.—it can quickly assemble a very thorough and accurate profile about *you*. It is worse than just profiling you; they are SPYING on you! These techniques are unethical, potentially illegal, even possibly unconstitutional and downright creepy!
> *
> ...


----------



## EZO (Aug 4, 2012)

gadget_lover said:


> I'm the exception. I spent 30 years in the computer field, several of those in data security for a couple of fortune 500 companies.
> 
> It is my opinion that for the average person, the tracking is neither nefarious nor damaging. Sometimes it's the only way to do business. Other times it just pays the web site's bills for what you are getting for free.
> 
> ...



I would have to respectfully disagree with your views here. While it is perfectly reasonable to engage in fairly sophisticated, in depth market research, or user tracking to provide a level of service and convenience that is of value to people, what is happening in the now 40 billion dollar online tracking industry is something else entirely and it goes far beyond paying a website's bills or providing value added services into the realm of a ubiquitous surveillance culture on steroids. The depth, breadth and granularity of real time online tracking, profiling and cross referencing of individuals is something most "average persons" would find abhorrent, assuming they even know it is going on at all. While many have no problem having Amazon or eBay track their purchases or product searches and offering suggestions accordingly, or the New York Times or Wall Street Journal monitoring which articles they read or even having Google place one into a "search bubble" offering up results based on what it decides you should be looking at based on your individual profile, many folks would not be happy to learn about the most personal, intimate and private aspects of their lives going into multiple personalized databases and that it is happening without their knowledge or permission. For example, I cannot imagine a scenario where someone typing a search query into Google seeking information about an extremely private and personal medical, psychiatric or sexual condition that they may or may not even have who would be comfortable about or happy to know that such searches are being recorded into a permanent personalized dossier. Out here in the "real" world we have laws concerning wiretapping, letter tampering, the recording of private conversations without the other parties knowledge, etc. but somehow the world online has evolved into a privacy free for all where we have the Googles and Yahoos of the internet scanning every email for content and everything we say and do online is up for grabs to the highest bidders. When every click, mouse-over, search query or even keystroke is used to compile highly detailed personal profiles on individuals into enormous databases it will do more harm than good in the long term while offering little in the name of real "value". The abuse is baked into the cake. Of course, this isn't just being done in the name of corporate profits. Many government agencies around the world are salivating over these technologies and tracking capabilities. The Nazi SS would have loved it.


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## 127.0.0.1 (Aug 5, 2012)

umm, yeah I have to agree with EZO

I am someone who works for -all- the fortune 500 and every government agency you
can imagine in the field of computer security. I work on specific types of systems and
I won't say exactly which type...but it is big deal stuff and everyone with secret assets
to protect uses it. [I just happen to be at one of the organizations who
hires the brightest physicists and mathematicians and cryptographers, and has labs embedded
in the biggest universities, and organizations buy our software and hardware products to secure
whatever enterprise they operate, whether pharma, science, commerce or governance...I work on these systems]
...and computer security and anything that can occurs online is serious business. we have 40,000 employees
where I work and 2800 of these are specific to crypto, the others are specific to storing vast amounts
of data and protecting it, while also delivering it in microseconds when it is called up

three points

1) yup, full disclosure on what tracking is used for is not in everyone's hands, but needs to be.

2) the bad guys use the very same components and software engines developed for innocent commerce
and safe tracking and metrics,....for evil. you do not know if your info accidentally get redirected to a bad guy

3) good company has all your metrics, and your relationship with the web and tracking is currently great, it is 
working as designed and everyone is happy, commerce works, you find products you like...the bad guy
hacks and gets access to that database and now ALL your info is in the bad guys hands. *this is the current
gigantic flaw in this whole system.* this data can NOT be guaranteed fully protected, due to the fact that
humans make mistakes...and this type of problem is why I have a job. it is easier to track when and who stole 
some data, than to stop it from being stolen in the first place, and it is a constant battle to do both.

another huge flaw is many organizations that do tracking and have critical data, hire pinhead so-called 
security professionals for the IT work, and they really do not have a freaking clue about what they do, 
but they tell a good story in an interview and end up with important decision-making positions...then they 
may or may not implement software such as what my company provides, but they screw it up, get behind on patches and updates, and...you know the rest of this story...it hits the news that XYZ credit card database has been stolen...


so yeah be a little paranoid about tracking. the only ones who care are companies who need to sell you something
or generate ad revenue, they hate your blocking. but the hackers and evil doers rely on peoples personal data
being constantly collected, sorted, and organized into a little portfolio that they can go attempt to steal someday and then
impersonate you somehow and gain an advantage

this is why I am largely off-the-grid in my real life. at work I am plugged right in, but I have only a normal cell
phone that does no GPS and just use it for voice only.


finally, no matter how smart I am, or how much smarter the real super-genius people are who develop
for my company, no matter how smart that MIT professor or nobel-prize winner in mathematics is, there is
always someone just a bit smarter, a bit more evil, a bit more desperate...who is trying to break the systems.
multiply this by 10,000 and put the power of unlimited evil government funding behind it, and you soon
see that *the responsibility of protecting ones self starts at home on your own systems.*


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## hoffmyster86 (Aug 5, 2012)

there never was any online privacy.. only the aninimaty of the mass's and not drawing attension.


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## Sub_Umbra (Aug 5, 2012)

127.0.0.1 said:


> ...*the responsibility of protecting ones self starts at home on your own systems.*


Ding, ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!


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## blasterman (Aug 5, 2012)

> another huge flaw is many organizations that do tracking and have critical data, hire pinhead so-called
> security professionals for the IT work, and they really do not have a freaking clue about what they do,



IT pet Peeve #1

90% of the large companies I've done IT work for spend too much time and resources on Layer 3 and not enough on Layer 7. The IT Director will do anything the Cisco certified nerds tell them and hand them an open check book, and yet delegate layer 7 to desktop support staff and allow every user full desktop admin rights because they don't want to fight the political battle. You cannot have network security when your user base has full admin rights to their own desktops and can install apps at will. I don't care how much money you spent on your content filter and what Cisco tells you. If end users are running a browser that has full admin rights, and / isn't isn't sanboxed with authority there isn't security. Virus / Malware scanners are nothing more than airbags that you hope will function after a crash. 

It is amusing though that some of the software mentioned here is the same stuff used to circumvent IT security measures. However, if the IT director doesn't have authority over what end users are running on their desktops it's not a technical matter anyways. Also, every piece of software you install is yet another variable and potential hack.


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## orbital (Dec 6, 2012)

*Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

+

Using Firefox {tested several versions},, anyone notice w/ other browsers 

Started just about 1/2 hour ago, the only way around it is to hit the Reload button, 
another hassle!



..the web gets less cool _*daily*_.


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## TooManyGizmos (Dec 6, 2012)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

~

DUHH .... how else can they TRACK your activity ?

objectives should be obvious by now .

~


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## EZO (Dec 6, 2012)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

*Bleep Google!*

Try using DuckDuckGo. They offer excellent search results and do not track you or filter bubble you. (Watch the video on the About page to learn more about DuckDuckGo...lots of cool features!)

Try StartPage. They don't track you either or record your IP address and in essence what you are getting is Google with all the tracking data stripped away. (About Startpage privacy)

Try Bing. All in all excellent search results in a well presented format.

None of these alternatives to Google require you to use cookies.

EDIT: If you really wanna' use Google but are concerned about cookies and other locally stored tracking data (like web bugs or beacons) in Firefox, just go up to the Tools Menu (Mac) or Firefox Button (Windows) and select Clear Recent History after your search. A quick and convenient way to do this on a Mac is to hold down the Command and Shift keys and hit Delete or Control/Shift + Delete in Windows.


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## EZO (Dec 6, 2012)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

UPDATE: This is interesting....After a little experimentation I discovered that if I disallow cookies in Firefox and attempt to do a search from Google's home page I get nothing.......just a blank Google page. With cookies still disabled in Firefox's preferences, if I do the same Google search using the integrated search field in Firefox's toolbar everything works fine. (But you end up at a different URL string on Google)

Perhaps others can try this and report back with confirmation.......I'm using Firefox 18 Beta.

Edit: Had some time later in the day to check out Google using Safari (6.0.2) and it works fine with or without allowing cookies, so this issue seems unique to Firefox and may be worth reporting to Mozilla.


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## Dromsy (Dec 7, 2012)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

I found a solution to this problem.

I managed to search with Google in Firefox 17.0.1 having Google cookies blocked. Do the following:

1. Search for a simple word on www.google.com. Any word. Let's say you search the word 'professional' (without quotes).
2. Of course the search results don't show up but when you refresh the page the results will show up ok.
3. Copy the URL from the address bar in Notepad. The URL will be something like http://www.google.com/#hl=en&tbo=d&sclient= ......... and so on.
4. Delete the word professional from the URL. It appears two times. So you'll be left with a similar URL but without the word you searched for in it.
5. Copy the new URL from Notepad to the address bar in Firefox and press Enter. A new Google search page shows up.
6. Bookmark this Google search page. You can make it your homepage. Now if you start your searches from this page you can search on Google having
cookies blocked.

Please, let me know if it worked for you.


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## orbital (Dec 8, 2012)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

^

any _Bookmarked_ Google searches will give full results,, nothing wrong w/ havin' the thinking cap on 
The issue becomes Searches on the fly & the the problem w/ the second page of results.

~~ side note; a few years ago, I first noticed Google searches gave different results when Cookies are enabled.
(particularly on consumer items)

I want raw_* 'unpersonalized'*_ search results

..


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## EZO (Dec 8, 2012)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*



orbital said:


> ^
> ~~ side note; a few years ago, I first noticed Google searches gave different results when Cookies are enabled.
> (particularly on consumer items)
> 
> ...



Orbital, you are referring to the "filter bubble" that I mentioned in my previous post. Check out this link....and this one......and then try DuckDuckGo. You'll get the completely_* unpersonalized*_ search results you seek.
Break the Google habit!!

Edit: Also see the article in Forbes Magazine *"Breaking Out of Your Internet Filter Bubble"*.


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## orbital (Oct 25, 2013)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

+

Quick heads up,,
today I just happened to check my Adobe Flash Setting and was very surprised/pissed to see my Local Shared Objects aka _Flash Cookies _settings changed!! 

http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager07.html

It was now allowing 3rd party flash cookies and X amount data stored on my drive.
There is no way I would ever change these..

Adobe would likely say it was a 'glitch' :shakehead


Not impressed!!

_________________________________________________________
add: this is not a situation of doing a Flash update either 

when I do those,, I immediately check my settings.
Haven't done a flash update in a few months..


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## thedoc007 (Oct 25, 2013)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

Regarding Ghostery, you might want to read this article:

http://www.technologyreview.com/news/516156/a-popular-ad-blocker-also-helps-the-ad-industry/


----------



## EZO (Oct 25, 2013)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*



orbital said:


> +
> 
> Quick heads up,,
> today I just happened to check my Adobe Flash Setting and was very surprised/pissed to see my Local Shared Objects aka _Flash Cookies _settings changed!!
> ...



Having been an Adobe software user for 20 years now I have watched this once beloved company become increasingly despised by its customers, myself included for a wide range of reasons including chronic lapses in security, a general arrogance and contempt for the needs and preferences of their customers and willingness to engaging in exploitative pricing tactics in their near monopoly of their industry. But don't get me started......

The best way to be sure you are not plagued by Flash Cookies otherwise known as LSOs (local stored objects) also sometimes called Super Cookies is to use FireFox as your browser as well as the BetterPrivacy browser plug in. BetterPrivacy will allow you to monitor, count and delete all LSOs stored on your machine. A relatively new feature of the Firefox browser will also give you the option of deleting Flash Cookies when you quit the browser. I use both tools and periodically quit the browser to flush things out. (This can also be useful if you are using Little Snitch's "Deny Until Quit" setting.

If you want to use Firefox to delete Flash Cookies, or anything else for that matter, go to menu item "Preferences", then to "Privacy" and check off the box to delete them when you quit. While you are there, check off the box to delete "Offline Website Data" as shown below. Make sure you check off the box that says, "Clear history when Firefox closes". (some people like to keep their history but it is a good practice to flush this periodically IMHO)


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## bshanahan14rulz (Oct 25, 2013)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

many applications like flash now update automatically by default. 

Just take the blue pill. I hear it's blueberry flavored!


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## dc38 (Oct 25, 2013)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*



bshanahan14rulz said:


> many applications like flash now update automatically by default.
> 
> Just take the blue pill. I hear it's blueberry flavored!



For maximum Mind Blown, take the red pill instead. I hear that it's ALSO blueberry flavored. It's a lose lose situation here.


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## moldyoldy (Oct 25, 2013)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*



EZO said:


> <snip>
> 
> The best way to be sure you are not plagued by Flash Cookies otherwise known as LSOs (local stored objects) also sometimes called Super Cookies is to use FireFox as your browser as well as the BetterPrivacy browser plug in. BetterPrivacy will allow you to monitor, count and delete all LSOs stored on your machine. A relatively new feature of the Firefox browser will also give you the option of deleting Flash Cookies when you quit the browser. I use both tools and periodically quit the browser to flush things out. (This can also be useful if you are using Little Snitch's "Deny Until Quit" setting.
> 
> ...



ahhh, I resisted so far, but this entry was sufficiently interesting to comment on:

Last first: My FF browser (24.0) is not in the English language and does not have the FlashCookies delete entry in the security settings panel. odd.

I dropped Ghostery and installed "Disconnect" which is or was not available on the Mozilla FF plug-in website. With Disconnect, quite a few more trackers showed up as blocked or still open for predictable sites. odd. I wonder why...

Ref closing browsers: In addition to not allowing history or passwords to be saved, and assuming all history is deleted when I close FF, there are some additional practices that are useful. If you log in to a website with an ID/pwd, always log in from a fresh browser launch - never from an additional tab and use the Privacy mode (InPrivate). When you have completed your work, always log out AND close the browser window used to log in, and any other browser window you may have open. 

Ref logging in with ID/pwd: Keystroke loggers cannot track mouse movements. Hence if you want to confuse keystroke loggers, use the following pattern: Type the first 3 or last 3 characters of your password incorrectly, yet all other characters correctly. Then highlight the incorrect characters with your mouse and retype them. Do NOT use the DEL or Backspace key or any Shift/Arrow keys. The correctly typed characters will replace the incorrect characters. In effect, your password as entered has been lengthened by the number of characters originally incorrectly typed. Then as long as you never use any word in any dictionary as part of your password, and vary the location and number of incorrect characters, the likelyhood of your password being decoded by a keystroke logger is very small. It would be desirable if you also had a 2-way SW firewall that would catch any attempted transmission by the keystroke logger - which you would then deny. All this in the possible case when a keystroke logger slips past your paid anti-virus solution.

Also, Google Chrome communicates with it's Mother Ship even when you are not using Google Chrome and did not open it! Same problem as Apple SW, although Apple is more 'up-front' about doing that.

If you are really neurotic, you would create a flash drive with a full OS image, preferably from a new computer. All storage goes to the flash drive, nothing to laptop hard drive, make a copy of that. Boot from the flash drive. do your business online. log off the Flashdrive OS. delete that OS from the flash drive along with all data. Switch to the next flash drive for your next online session.

For that matter, most European Governmental security personnel never use the same computer for banking as for surfing the Internet. Also, many European ministers have 3 cell phones: 1 for secure talk. 1 for data. 1 for personnel. Each of those cells have a different security solution. SECUSMART is only one of many solutions. The best security SW/firmware is normally not from any public company. That includes https:// or the AES forms. The final answer lies with the user!

edit: keep in mind that the math genius that provided the original impetus to breaking the German Enigma code realized that it was not necessary to test all combinations of the cipher. only a small segment would suffice. so much for all those combinations, permutations, and prime numbers.


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## moldyoldy (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Google requiring cookies turned On for Search*

inasmuch as the thread title seems to have changed, these comments are thereby off-topic, although still perhaps worthwhile to note:

To protect themselves from rootkits (keystroke loggers, etc.), users should frequently reboot their computers. This gives the paid anti-virus SW a chance to scan the startup files. Rootkits were started by Sony in it's DRM efforts - which was unfortunately picked up on by virus-writers.

Really off-topic, but cell phones are even more susceptible to hacking. Even if the user 'turns off' his/her cell phone, the cell phone is not actually totally shut down. It is merely in a light or deep sleep (depending on brand/model). The cellular carrier (or others) can still send messages to that cell and those msgs are not reported or logged to the user. That is why when I shut off my cell phone for certain ocassions, I remove the battery and leave it out of the cell phone. In some German firms, the managers are required to place their cell phones in a metal box as well before certain conferences.


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## Chauncey Gardiner (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Is Online Privacy Truly Gone? Google Requiring Cookies Turned On for Search*

[email protected]@Ks like two threads were merged. Carry on discussing both subjects.

~ Chance


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## StarHalo (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Is Online Privacy Truly Gone? Google Requiring Cookies Turned On for Search*

Everybody finds out they agree with my guy after it's too late: Opting Out From the Corporate State of Surveillance


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## zespectre (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Is Online Privacy Truly Gone? Google Requiring Cookies Turned On for Search*

Online "Privacy".
25 years in the IT industry (US DOD, then US DOJ) I've come to one conclusion. "Two people can keep a secret as long as one of them is dead".


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## Chauncey Gardiner (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Is Online Privacy Truly Gone? Google Requiring Cookies Turned On for Search*



zespectre said:


> "Two people can keep a secret as long as one of them is dead".



Truer words were never spoken. They should be posted in the Words To Live By thread.

~ Chance


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## idleprocess (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Is Online Privacy Truly Gone? Google Requiring Cookies Turned On for Search*



zespectre said:


> Online "Privacy".
> 25 years in the IT industry (US DOD, then US DOJ) I've come to one conclusion. "Two people can keep a secret as long as one of them is dead".



... and there's no record of them communicating said secret nor any records to _infer_ that said secret may have been communicated.


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## Monocrom (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Is Online Privacy Truly Gone? Google Requiring Cookies Turned On for Search*

Bottom Line:

Yes, privacy online is pretty much dead. Don't post anything that you don't want strangers to see or friends, familiy, or your boss might stumble across.


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## Chauncey Gardiner (Oct 26, 2013)

*Re: Is Online Privacy Truly Gone? Google Requiring Cookies Turned On for Search*

^
.....or even worse......a moderator! :whoopin:  :banned:

~ Chance
ootus


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## knotgoofy (Oct 28, 2014)

*Internet Privacy*

I have had a lot of friends who have been hacked recently, and I can't help think that if it happened to them, it can happen to me. What can I do or what programs or software can I use to make sure that my privacy on the internet is secure?


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## Polargirl (Oct 28, 2014)

*Re: Internet Privacy*

Oh goodie, a thread about internet piracy. Bittorrent anyone?

Oh, it says privacy. :shrug:


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## troutpool (Oct 28, 2014)

*Re: Internet Privacy*

Have a look here: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?338651-Is-online-Privacy-truly-gone. Lots of suggestions.


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## Norm (Oct 28, 2014)

*Re: Internet Privacy*



troutpool said:


> Have a look here: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?338651-Is-online-Privacy-truly-gone. Lots of suggestions.


Threads merged - Norm


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## heelsthrow (Nov 5, 2014)

Okay so I read all of the posts and found some very good ad blocking programs. But one of my computer savvy friends told me about something called _*link removed by Greta_
Could that assist in the fight against tracking?


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## orbital (Jan 24, 2020)

+

Just under 8 years ago I started this thread,
____We are at a point where Privacy is an illusion, not just online, but in public also. 

* A.I. will be the two letters that'll have more impact than anything*


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## scout24 (Jan 25, 2020)

I told my kids repeatedly growing up that you had no expectation of privacy once you're outside of your house. Everywhere you went had surveillance cameras, none of them use cash, just their damned debit cards. (This was before smart tv's, alexa, siri, and them having smartphones.) I fear today privacy within those four walls is gone as well for most people in the name of "convenience." My brother in law has a program or service where his IP addy bounces around all over the place and claims privacy that way. I don't know enough about it, but have my doubts.


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## bykfixer (Jan 25, 2020)

In one word: Yes. It's gone and we gave it away. Every fakebook, tweeter, instachat and other social platforms are notorious for sharing info regardless how many security boxes you check. 
Google, microsoft and apple too. 

Forget the NSA, they like other government beauracracies are largely inefficient where private industry has mastered the sharing of data. 

My dad used to say "what you say cannot be held against you but what you write down can and will be".


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## orbital (Jan 25, 2020)

+

Google & Facebook are at a combined value of approx. 1.6 trillion dollars.
That's not from people uploading cat videos..

We are in an A.I. world now & we likely can't unring that bell.

side note: I remember having dinner w/ my parents in like '04,, we were taking about the Patriot Act and they asked me my opinion.
I said basically that it strips away any sense of privacy we still had,, they really didn't care for what I was saying.
"if you have nothing to hide, what's the problem" 

I said "that's not the point"


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## bykfixer (Jan 26, 2020)

Exactly!!


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## idleprocess (Jan 26, 2020)

One thing that concerns me that I saw coming _years_ ago was the ability of law enforcement to gather evidence of online activity. It's now commonplace for news reports about _*ongoing investigations*_ to state _"suspect conducted online searches on X, Y, Z prior to the incident"_ in ominous tones. So libraries, ISPs, internet cafe's, the 'Zon, social media, and anyone else that can reasonably tag activity to individuals just give this up so readily now?


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## bykfixer (Jan 26, 2020)

A cowrker in my field told me was suspended from his job of 42 years for 10 days without pay for something he said on his personal page of fakebook. 
His error was to name the place he works at and a lady called there and complained about what he had said to her about recent political events in his state. 

Me? I was born in 1911, live in Gnome Alaska and work for "the Man" according to fakebook.


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## bigburly912 (Jan 26, 2020)

bykfixer said:


> A cowrker in my field told me was suspended from his job of 42 years for 10 days without pay for something he said on his personal page of fakebook.
> His error was to name the place he works at and a lady called there and complained about what he had said to her about recent political events in his state.
> 
> Me? I was born in 1911, live in Gnome Alaska and work for "the Man" according to fakebook.



I almost had to fire my best friend over a Huffington Post article about a lion being killed. It was rough.


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## 5S8Zh5 (Jan 27, 2020)

i use a proxy often.


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## bykfixer (Jan 27, 2020)

Apparently folks can clone your plastic cards while still in your wallet or purse now?


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## archimedes (Jan 27, 2020)

Please don't change established thread titles


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## Chauncey Gardiner (Jan 27, 2020)

Why are people surprised that they don't have any privacy when they've posted everything about themselves on social media?


----------

