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Security and Privacy is an important issue for all those who access the internet. In order to protect ourselves there are a few precautions that can be taken. I will discuss a couple of areas that surround security and privacy online. I will also recommend software that you can download, along with web sites that contain a vast amount of information concerning security and privacy..


Cookies

Cookies are small files that are placed on the hard disk of your computer by a server when you visit certain web pages. This information allows the server to store information about a user such as what sites you visit. Cookies do not reveal information such as your name, email address, or other personal information. However, some sites may ask you for this information. Once they have your name and so on, they are able to match up the information you supply them, with your cookie ID. This is when a user will lose all of their anonymity.

There are times when a web site will require you to accept a cookie in order to enter a site. For example, if you have a yahoo email address, you need to accept cookies in order to check your email. If you do not wish to let others track your web activities and would like to control and block cookies, you can use a program called Cookie Pal. This program is made by Kookaburra Software You can try this program before you buy it. For more information about Cookie Pal or about cookies in general visit Kookaburra Software.


Firewalls

Many times people are able to access your computer without your knowledge. In order to protect yourself you need what is called a firewall. A firewall blocks individuals who are trying to access your computer. To find out whether or not your computer system is vulnerable when connected to the internet visit Shields Up - Internet Connection Security Analysis.

After you have visited the site and it has performed the test, you might now be concerned about the security of your internet connection. In order to protect your security and privacy I recommend that you download a program called Zonealarm. You can download the program at http://www.zonelabs.com/ The program is free for personal and non profit use. Once you have downloaded the program, be sure and conduct the Internet Connection Security Analysis once again. This analysis should look quite different once you have Zonealarm configured and running on your system. No one is ever completely secure online, but this program will help tremendously.


Email

Anyone with a email address knows how frustrating it is to receive junk email. If you receive junk email, and they say "if you wish to be removed from our mail list please reply".. do not reply. This will only confirm to them that your email address is valid, and they may continue to send you email and also possibly sell your email address to others.

To find out more information about junk email, please visit Cauce - Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email by clicking on the banner below.




Below is a few organizations online that deal with security and privacy issues.

Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) - Protecting Rights and Promoting Freedom in the Electronic Frontier




Privacy.net- The Consumer Information Organization

Electronic Privacy Information Center

The Privacy Page


If you need to look up any terms that I have not provided, please use the search box below to find the meaning of the term.

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