untangling_the_web

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./ Describe some known problems and how to cope with them.
./ Point you to some privacy-related sites that have good information about
keeping a low profile and preventing malicious attacks.
Ultimately, each individual must be responsible for staying up to date with the latest
news about computer vulnerabilities-you're your own best line ofdefense.
Basics for Improving Your Internet Privacy
and SecurUy
The first thing you should do is check one of the sites that lets you see what
information is being unwittingly provided about you as you surf. Go to the following
sites to see what is known about you as you browse and, in the case of Shields
Up!, what can be done to your computer while you're on line. As Steve Gibson, the
site's creator, explains, "Without your knowledge or explicit permission, the Windows
networking technology which connects your computer to the Internet may be offering
some or all of your computer's data to the entire world at this very moment!" At his
site, Gibson offers very practical ways to protect yourself and your data.
Shields Up!
Junkbusters
BrowserHawk Browser Analysis
Browser Spy Browser Analysis
Russ Haynal's Persona Check
http://www.grc.com/
http://www.junkbusters.com/cgi-bin/privacy
http://www.syscape.com/showbrow.aspx
http://gemal.dk/browserspy/
http://navigators.comfcgi-bin/navigators/persona.pl
HackerWhacker Free Tools http://whacker4.hackerwhacker.com/freetools.php
especially the Browser Leakage and Quick Scan for open ports
Sygate/Symantec Online Security Services
http://scan.sygate.com/home homeoffice/sygate/index.jsp
Sygate is now owned by Symantec.
There is some, though not much, "security through obscurity." If you have dial-up
access to the Internet through a commercial ISP, you likely will be assigned a
different ("dynamic") IP address every time you log on, which means it is difficult to
link you as an individual customer of a particular ISP to any specific IP number
registered to that provider. Furthermore, if you use an ISP with a large geographic
coverage area, it may be difficult to pin down your location. On the other hand, your
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