Protecting your right to privacy on the web

When you go to a Web site, there may be several other companies besides the owner watching your every click. Recent studies have shown that over 90% of Web sites gather personal information. Almost all major Web sites enable third-party tracking through remote images you can't even see, and with Web bugs.

There is no restriction of their rights to use or sell that information. Using increasingly sophisticated technology, marketers and criminals are easily able to access private and personal information from anyone they choose.

This kind of spyware secretly forwards information about a computer user's online activities to some another individual or company without the user's knowledge or permission. Left undetected, it may lead to increased identity and personal information theft, computer corruption and exposure to annoying pop-up ads.

The end is nowhere in sight. Direct marketers are increasing the amount and intensity of their online advertising to compensate for the anticipated loss of consumer access which will follow the eventual implementation of the FTC's National Do Not Call Registry.

The delay in implementation of this directive shows, once again, that technological solutions are the only reliable counter to predatory marketing. It is difficult and slow to get laws passed, and even when they are, the international nature of the Internet renders them ineffective.

While most users have at least heard of the anti-virus and firewall products used to secure their computers they are not aware of the need to protect their personal privacy and identity, beyond simply protecting the computer. They are largely unaware of the pervasiveness of hidden Web threats and don't have any idea in the world how to protect themselves from them.

Typically, spyware arrives bundled with freeware or shareware, through e-mail or instant message, or by someone with access to a user's computer. Once on a hard drive, it begins reporting the next time the user goes online. Unlike most software applications, spyware is difficult to detect and can be difficult to remove.

"Unfortunately, many people are unaware of the serious threat that spyware poses or even of its presence on their computers," said Rob Kaiser, vice president of narrowband marketing at EarthLink.net

"The vast majority of consumers are completely unaware of the level of tracking and information harvesting and selling that is taking place," agrees Lance Cottrell, president and founder of Anonymizer, Inc. "Protecting yourself, your personal information and your identity is more important than protecting your computer. When you go to a Web site, there may be several other companies watching your every click. There is no restriction of their rights to use or sell that information."

He continued: "Even medical and financial sites are not protected. And the costs, for example of identity theft, can be devastating."

Some of the more dangerous spyware programs include keystroke loggers, system monitors and trojans. Keystroke loggers monitor and record each user's keystroke, possibly exposing the user to the risk of information and identity theft. System monitors are designed to keep track of a consumer's computer activity and can record virtually everything a user does online. Finally, trojans are applications that appear as harmless requested programs, but instead facilitate theft of computer data by permitting hackers to gain unrestricted access to computers while Web surfers are online.

Right now is the time for consumers to "unlist" their Internet address, much like caller ID-blocking, to stop email harvesting by spammers and all the other intrusive predatory and marketing practices.

Rushing to help, there is a new privacy manager product out called The Privacy Analyzer which provides a free evaluation of the threats that are actually posed by each site you visit. The evaluation program counts and displays all privacy threats like pop-ups, cookies and scripts in an easy to read, real-time list. "We believe that once people are able to preview the threats, they will upgrade to Privacy Manager to prevent and eliminate them."

How Privacy Manager Protects You From Threats

Privacy Manager is an innovative service that protects consumers and businesses against all forms of Web threats and annoyances, including ads, pop-ups, advertiser tracking and personal profiling, and aggressive hacker attacks intended to damage or control people's computers.

"This is the ultimate, all-in-one privacy solution for both individuals and businesses," said Bill Unrue, chief executive officer of Anonymizer.

Privacy Manager runs invisibly (in the background) to provide a host of protection features for users while surfing the Web. Just like a virus protection program that works "behind the scenes" to thwart viruses from reaching a computer, Privacy Manager works transparently so that users can freely surf the Web with the confidence that they are completely protected and shielded from all privacy threats.

This service includes features such as hiding a user's personal computer Internet address, blocking of ads and pop-ups, and military-grade file shredding to erase all traces of Web surfing, including cookies, tracking bugs, scripts, temporary files and more-all of which are commonly-used marketing and criminal abuses.

"Privacy Manager is designed to take care of you and your computer in the ever-escalating battle between you and spammers, online marketers and those dangerous identity thieves. It also eliminates the hassle of buying individual programs that might conflict with one another. All you need to do is sign up for this all-inclusive service and let it do all the work."

If you let Privacy Manager to do all the work for you, there is a Global Privacy Level option that automatically assigns a medium level of privacy to all sites visited. Anonymizer offers free downloads for particular sites with a recommended level of privacy that has been predetermined by Anonymizer according to the threat level of those sites; however, users are always able to change the privacy level themselves if they choose. The recommended sites list is continually updated and allows users to download updates with a click of the mouse.

Anonymizer puts the power to stop this abuse directly into the hands of consumers, without the option of appeal or circumvention by the marketers.

Features

State-of-the-art protection features include:

Runs automatically and transparently on your PC (always "on");
Provides superior pop-up and ad blocking capabilities;
Stops spammers from harvesting your email address from your browser;
Removes cookies and tracking files using a special "system sweeper" technology;
Filters and blocks cookies, ads and tracking bugs downloaded to your
computer by Web sites;
Keeps your Internet address private and unlisted;
Blocks malicious code or scripts on your PC.

With Anonymizer's Privacy Manager, users receive the highest level of privacy protection, ensuring they are protected from hacking and tracking by the sites they visit. Additionally, Privacy Manager offers customizable features so the user can assign specific levels of privacy and security for each Web site they visit.

For example, if the user often visits a site they trust, such as their bank's Web site, they can assign a lower level of privacy protection. For the sites that require enhanced protection, such as an aggressive marketing site, a higher level of privacy can be assigned, including the ability to block them entirely.

Price and Availability

Privacy Manager is available now at http://www.anonymizer.com for an introductory
price of $49.99 for a year long subscription. Program updates are automatically included for paying subscribers. If consumers aren't convinced of the amount of tracking devices and threats that may exist on the sites they often visit, they can first download the Privacy Analyzer at http://www.anonymizer.com/privacyanalyzer .

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION about Privacy Manager, contact Paula Dunne Contos Dunne Communications paula@contosdunne.com Phone 408.776.1400

Recently, (9 October 2003) EarthLink, one of the nation's leading Internet service providers, introduced Spyware Blocker, which offers protection against more than 1,500 different forms of these hidden applications.

Spyware Blocker is now included with EarthLink's TotalAccess(R) 2004 Internet software, free-of-charge, and current subscribers can now download a copy at ttp://www.earthlink.net/home/software.

"EarthLink's program will provide users with a tool to help identify and quarantine the spyware already on the computer. Remember, anti-virus and firewall software are usually ineffective at preventing this type of infiltration.
"Spyware Blocker is intended to provide added peace of mind. It is designed to help our members know what's installed on their computers and allows them to take steps to better protect themselves and their families when spending time spent online," Kaiser added.

Members can restore halted spyware at any time.

You will also want to check out the EPIC Online Guide to Practical Privacy Tools found at www.epic.org/privacy/tools.html.

Privacy Manager Monitor for HIPAA - A Tivoli privacy manager monitor, designed as a part of the WebSphere Business Integration Transaction Processing for HIPAA solution, that enforces privacy policies and generates audit trails for HIPAA claims processing.

One of the privacy protections I use is found at http://www.avantbrowser.com/ This is a skin, or an upgrade to Internet Explorer. Avant Browser is a fast, stable, user-friendly, versatile multi-window browser. It can stop pop-ups, java, perl, cookies, and even give you a picture free version of the web pages you are visiting. I like it. Avant Browser is freeware. That's right. No cost to you ever. No limitations. Oh sure. You can donate something if you want, but it's certainly not required.

Please note: This article may be reprinted in your newsletter, in electronic format, in print media, or on your web site without charge or obligation provided the following credit is included with the article.

Dozens of other health and insurance articles by Lin Stone and many other professional writers are available from www.insuranceroundup.com/

Protecting Your PrivacyOn The Web

How Privacy Manager Protects You From Threats

Features

Protecting Your Privacy
On The Web