Computing, networking, Web-surfing, etc. on state-of-the-art equipment
have rapidly become the norm for housewives, students, retirees as well
as business moguls. According to A1 Electronics, major emphasis is now
shifting to personal security for the Web, the Internet and e-mail. And
it's not just home PC users. Business users, too, must arm themselves
with information and software to keep their PCs from being loaded with
"cookies" that keep track of the sites you have visited, the
advertising you open, your personal information, as well as the time
and dates of your movement through the Internet. IT administrators will
have to be especially careful to ensure that cookies are not
inadvertently giving away important company information.
Once a profile of a user's computing habits is captured, the
information is offered to DoubleClick or Abacus, Web advertisers who
are building a colossal database of consumer information. Ultimately,
this info will be rented out to other advertisers who will be privy
to personal and business information such as social security numbers,
unlisted phones, credit reports, etc.
Cookies may be removed one by one but it soon becomes a tedious chore.
There are several inexpensive software programs that will automatically
remove these cookies for you. System Mechanic is an excellent one that
kicks into action as soon as a PC is turned on. It goes into action
checking cookies, cache and anything else that may clog up your
computer. As you browse the Net, advertisers are collecting as much
information on you as you allow! If you look in your folder called
Cookies you will be amazed at how many there are and how much space
they gobble up. They need to be removed, if only to conserve room on
your hard drive.
There are several free programs that can be used for the same purpose:
* ZoneAlarm. You can block any access to or from the Web, Internet or
LAN. It will inform you which sites are attempting to access your
computer. It acts as a personal software firewall.
* ZoneLog Analyser is an add-on for ZoneAlarm and is free. It will
read and display a log file of unauthorized attempts to access your
computer.
* AdSubtract is a freeware program that will filter ads and cookies.
It comes in three versions with varied levels of functionality. The
highest is AdSubtract Pro, which blocks ads, cookies, pop-up windows,
animations, music and more. It also includes Advanced Cookie Management, which
highlights dangerous online profiling cookies. You can buy it for
$29.95.
* OptOut is another free program that is used to deal with large
advertisers like DoubleClick. It will find and remove these advertising
programs from your system.
* Ad-aware is another free program and may be used in conjunction with
OptOut.
The price is right. Try these free programs and keep your personal
life private. (Got Milk?)
About the author
Barrie Sosinsky (barries@killerapps.com)is president of consulting
company Sosinsky and Associates (Medfield, Mass.). He has written
extensively on a variety of computer topics. His company specializes in
custom software (database and Web related), training and technical
documentation.
Related book
Cookies
By Simon St. Lauren
Summary:
Let Simon St. Laurent give you the full picture of how cookies fit into your Web tooklit and how they work with other tools: The truth about cookies' power to invade privacy, spread viruses and breach security; Details to help you create cookies with maximum functionality, including client-side cookie scripting and server-side cookie applications; Step-by-step instructions on delivering content tailored to individual users; Insights into the latest improvements to the cookie standard and new specifications from Microsoft and Netscape/Verisign, including the Open Profiling Standard; Sample cookie files and code; Advice on blending cookies and Java; Better ways to track site usage; Simulated cookies for browsers that can't handle them; Alternative routes when users hostile to cookies have turned them off; And the lowdown on higher-level user verification methods, such as digital signatures and encryption.
