Tuesday, March 13, 2007

How to surf anonymously without a trace - ComputerWorld The punchline to an old cartoon is "On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog," but these days, that's no longer true. It's easier than ever for the government, Web sites and private businesses to track exactly what you do online, know where you've visited, and build up comprehensive profiles about your likes, dislikes and private habits. And with the federal government increasingly demanding online records from sites such as Google and others, your online privacy is even more endangered. But you don't need to be a victim. There are things you can do to keep your surfing habits anonymous and protect your online privacy. So read on to find out how to keep your privacy to yourself when you use the Internet, without spending a penny. 4:51:27 PM

Do You Need to Surf Anonymously? Do You Need to Surf Anonymously?  An anonymous reader writes "Computerworld has up an article entitled 'How to Surf Anonymously without a Trace'. It purports to offer tips on how to avoid detection by anyone attempting to monitor your internet access. 'If you don't like the limitations imposed on you by [proxy] sites like the Cloak or would simply prefer to configure anonymous surfing yourself, you can easily set up your browser to use an anonymous proxy server to sit between you and the sites you visit. To use an anonymous proxy server with your browser, first find an anonymous proxy server. Hundreds of free, public proxy servers are available, but many frequently go offline or are very slow. Many sites compile lists of these proxy servers, including Public Proxy Servers and the Atom InterSoft proxy server list.'" [Slashdot: Your Rights Online] 4:48:57 PM

New US Computer Forensic Institute. New US Computer Forensic Institute. Quincy writes "The DHS and Secret Service are setting up a new computer forensic institute in Alabama. Set to open in mid-2008, the new National Computer Forensic Institute will be able to train over 900 law enforcement officers per year. 'It will initially be staffed by 18 Secret Service agents and will feature classrooms, a forensic laboratory, an evidence vault, and server rooms. Courses will be offered in the investigation of electronic crimes, network intrusion investigation, and computer forensics... [T]he Secret Service says that it will help to bring judges and prosecutors up to speed as well.'" Maybe over time we'll see fewer botches of justice like those in the news recently [Slashdot: Your Rights Online] 4:33:22 PM

CDT Opposes Bill Expanding Pentagon Domestic Data Mining. CDT Opposes Bill Expanding Pentagon Domestic Data Mining. CDT and other civil liberties groups are urging Congress to reject legislation that would exempt the Department of Defense from a key provision of the Privacy Act. The little-noticed amendment, already included in the Senate version of the Intelligence Authorization Act, would permit government agencies to disclose information on US citizens to the Defense Department. Such language could pave the way for entire databases of information to be transferred to the Defense Department without a clear purpose -- in turn opening the door to greater data mining by military agencies. [Center for Democracy and Technology] 4:07:21 PM

CDT Calls for Reform of National Security Letters. CDT Calls for Reform of National Security Letters. CDT is calling on Congress to require judicial approval of FBI efforts to access the sensitive records of US citizens. Recent revelations regarding violations in the use of so-called "national security letters" have shown that no matter how many internal controls the FBI adopts, self-certification in not sufficient when the government is obtaining the sensitive financial and communications records of citizens. CDT believes Congress should reform the law and adopt a reasonable system of judicial checks and balances. [Center for Democracy and Technology] 4:04:02 PM

McAfee Says Vista's StickyKeys Could Be Misused. McAfee Says Vista's StickyKeys Could Be Misused. A Windows Vista feature designed to simplify computing for disabled users has security implications, according to a McAfee researcher. [PC World: Latest Technology News] 4:02:15 PM

Secure your enterprise data. Secure your enterprise data. For DuPont, Gary Min may have seemed a model employee. A research chemist at DuPont's research laboratory in Circleville, Ohio, Min was a naturalized U.S. citizen with a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania who had worked for DuPont for 10 years, even earning a business degree from Ohio State University with help from his employer. But Min's veneer of respectability began to crack on Dec. 12, 2005, when he told his employer he would be leaving his job. [CSO Online Data Security Briefing] 3:57:32 PM

© Copyright 2007 Paul Hardwick. Last update: 3/18/07; 10:58:35 PM.