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August 8, 2006 5:01 PM PDT
FAQ: Protecting yourself from search engines
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Q: OK, Ixquick.com is fine and all that, but I want to keep using my favorite search engine. How can I protect my privacy while doing that?
The first thing you should do is clear the cookies that are set by
search engines--those let the company correlate your repeat visits. In
Firefox, go
to Preferences and select Privacy. There you have the option to delete
cookies and even prevent search engines from ever setting them again.
(Unfortunately, not all Web browsers offer this option.)
Let's say you're using Google. Add "google.com" to Firefox's list of cookies-not-allowed sites. Be warned: That prevents you from using options like personalization or Gmail, which is why you might want to keep another browser like Opera, Safari or Internet Explorer around to do those things.
If you're really worried, go to Anonymizer.com and sign up for one of its anonymous browsing options (they're primarily for Windows users). Tor is another option. It's a pain, but protecting your privacy may well be worth it.
Q: Excluding Ixquick, what information do other search engines collect?
We surveyed the search engines in
February of this year and asked them precisely that question.
The rough overview: Given a number of search terms, they can produce a list of people (identified by Internet address or cookie) who searched for a given term. Second, given a collection of Internet addresses, they can produce a list of the terms searched by the user of a given address. That effectively creates an electronic dossier of an individual.
Q: Who can get access to my list of search terms?
Well, prosecutors in criminal cases certainly can. And it's likely that
even lawyers in civil cases--divorce attorneys, employers in severance
disputes--eventually will demand that Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, AOL and
other search engines cough up users' search histories.
Q: Has this happened before?
Almost. A North Carolina man was found guilty of murder in November in
part because he Googled
the words "neck," "snap," "break" and "hold" before his wife was killed.
But those search terms were found on Robert Petrick's computer, not
obtained from Google directly.
Q: How are Internet addresses handed out? Do people always have the
same one?
It depends. Many DSL and cable modem providers allocate Internet
addresses only when they're in use (the methods are called DHCP
and PPPoe).
Those IP addresses can change frequently.
Other IP addresses tend to be fixed. Faculty and staff members at universities, and employees of corporations, are more likely to have fixed Internet addresses.
AOL Search is a unique case. Because AOL users tend to be logged in when using it, AOL will know who you are--assuming, that is, that you provided accurate information when signing up for its service.
Q: If Google knows I'm connecting from a dynamically assigned
Internet address of 192.1.1.1 one day, and 192.2.2.2 the next day and
192.3.3.3 the third, how can it link my queries together to create that
dossier?
This is where "cookies" come in. A cookie is simply a device for a Web
site to recognize people the next time they return. Google, Yahoo, AOL
and Microsoft all set cookies by default. (Microsoft's expire in 2016;
Yahoo's in 2010; Google's in 2038. AOL sets a third-party cookie that
expires in 2011.)
In the above example, Google.com would set a cookie for whoever's connecting from Internet address 192.1.1.1 the first day, and then figure out that the same Web browser is connecting from 192.2.2.2 and 192.3.3.3 the next two days. If people are logged in to their Google account, this makes the process even easier, of course.
Q: How long do companies keep records of my search terms?
In our survey, Microsoft, Google and Yahoo all said they keep data as long
as it's necessary, which could mean forever. Microsoft did add that they
are "looking at ways" to provide users with the option to delete their
search histories, and Yahoo made a similar statement. It's unclear how
long AOL keeps it.
See more CNET content tagged:
America Online Inc.,
search engine,
privacy,
FAQ,
record
says about Ixquick:
"The Netherlands-based company proudly says it doesn't keep
records of its users' Internet addresses. In other words, it does
save search terms, but the company says it's unable to link them
to any person, unique ID number or Internet address."
"'I'm a firm believer in the privacy cause,' Ixquick.com CEO
Robert Beens said in a recent interview with CNET News.com"
Beens, too, is unclear on the privacy concept. As the AOL
scandal showed, just the list of searches alone can be enough to
identify who is searching. AOL released no more info than Beens
collects, yet it was enough to reveal the searcher's identity.
NONE of these people - and that includes reporters - can be
trusted to have thought the privacy issue through and have a
competent grasp of culture, technology, legality, and yes,
mendacity.
Your comment is not correct.
Just a list of searches alone can not breach your Privacy.
AOL released not only search terms, but also unique 6 or 7-digit user numbers.
These user numbers made it possible to combine the otherwise completely random search terms into unique user profiles.
Without this "glue" ,the millions of individual search terms would have been relatively harmless.
Since Ixquick.com deletes its user's IP address from its log-files there simply is no "glue" to build a user's profile.
This safeguards the Privacy of Ixquick.com users.
its very possible not to without compromising your internet experience
search engine companies have become a proxy government with too much information about people
u wouldnt tell the government your personal life
so why submit keywords to search engines when you know they are passed onto the government if
the police think you've commited a crime
even if you didn't commit the crime
your civil liberties are breached
stop thinking search engine are neutral
thats crap
they hand over your information to the intelligence services all the time
you wouldn't goto a 'mi5' or 'mi6' search engine to do your searches
but by using google and yahoo search, thats basically what you're doing
boycott all search engines
its just a myth that you need them
there are other ways to find out about web sites
you can post to public web forums and ask for information on a subject, and 99.9% of the time someone will post you a URL or recommend you a site
thats what i do
let others search for you...
who would be so gullible to use a search engine?
not i
test yourself for four weeks
the test is, don't use a search engine for 4 weeks..
try it for yourself, its easier than you think
I know...
I'll goto ForumX.com post a request for info/url and then check back to get the info...
5 minutes later...nope...
well while I'm here I'll post for more info...
check back soon...
oops I'm out of time gotta go...
what did I accomplish? Posting crap on forums because I am TOO LAZY/TOO IGNORANT to use something like TOR (or to search for anonymizing tools) to keep me anonymous; which lazyness still allows my ISP to compile info about me to give to the government.. because if the Govt is going to Yahoo and Google YOU KNOW they're hitting up my ISP as well-- so for all this trouble and delay I am not any safer anyways!
That process may work for you but MOST people want to be able to surf NOW. For those people I recc TOR or other privacy tools for realtime surfing.
Complete privacy and security from any PC or device connected to the internet that you happen to be using at the time with absolutely no way for the PC to track where you have been.
Complete privacy and security on your credit card statement.
And, there is absolutly no software needed, it is ISP based, so it works from any and all PC's today!
This new Patented technology is an "Indirect Portal", not a proxy, an will change how users surf the internet forever. Why? You need to do nothing except surf from NotMe when you want complete and utter privacy. The way the internet used to be way back when.
Complete privacy and security from any PC or device connected to the internet that you happen to be using at the time with absolutely no way for the PC to track where you have been.
Complete privacy and security on your credit card statement.
And, there is absolutly no software needed, it is ISP based, so it works from any and all PC's today!
This new Patented technology is an "Indirect Portal", not a proxy, an will change how users surf the internet forever. Why? You need to do nothing except surf from NotMe when you want complete and utter privacy. The way the internet used to be way back when.
Try it its free anyway. http://www.blackboxsearch.com
And its FREE. http://www.blackboxsearch.com
notme.com/getme:url13567.aspx When U close the page the link recorded is expired. The site visited has zero clue who you are... and zero way of identifying you. You don't even need virus protection nor spyware protection... can't get one =)
Proxy's are a joke...an Indirect Portal is the only way of achieving Complete Internet Stealth. notme.com to find out more...
Proxies dont keep someone from breaking into your house and your computer. They keep you from unwittingly participating in a fight for your personal information surrendered without you knowing it over a network.
I uninstalled everything and am never using AOL.
That company screwed up majorly. I would fire all the company executives who are reposible for these problems on the spot immiediately and the dumb ass CEO.
Why does a normal person need to worry about getting information they deem sensitive. They do, and many people do not want AA or The Herpes Cafe or the Aids Hotline or RAINN in their histories yet need the help desperately...
done
Notme.com go wherever you want and no one will ever know, unless you break the law...
- IP's Are Often Static
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by good_nicks_taken
August 13, 2007 9:04 AM PDT
- If you use a router and you don't turn it off and have Comcast it's likely you will have the same IP for years. You don't need to be on some special network. If you go into your router and change the MAC address you will get a new IP. Some routers allow you to copy the MAC address of your PC's NIC instead of sending the MAC address of the router. Comcast will then give you a different IP.
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