Protecting Your Online Privacy By Using Encrypted Connections though Proxy Servers

Posted by on Oct 8, 2009 | 0 comments

Too many people take it for granted that what they do online is private and protected, but the truth is that most people have data that is vulnerable, all too ready for sophisticated people to capture.

Even people who work on private networks are at risk, but for those using public networks the risk is even greater. Keeping data secure is crucial for anyone who wants to avoid the damaging loss of personal or critical business information.

The simple act of hitting “Reply” on an email is task fraught with risk.

There are many safe guards that can be put in place, but one of the most secure ways to protect your online privacy is by using encrypted connections when working through a private proxy server.

Encryption, in terms of moving information, is the process by which data is put through a complex algorithm which makes it unreadable to anyone who does not have the key to decrypt it. Encryption can be used to protect data on computers and storage devices and is the first round of defense for those wanting to keep their personal data private when working online.

Another weapon in the arsenal of those wanting to protect their online privacy is the use of a private proxy server. A proxy server is a computer or application that serves as go-between for information requests between servers. Requests can be for information such as a web page, a file download, or other services and these are made through a proxy server rather than connecting directly to the server that houses the actual data.

The proxy server has two primary purposes, one is to maintain anonymity of the computer behind it for security reasons and the other reason is to speed access to a data resource.

There are numerous types of proxy servers including a caching proxy, a reverse proxy, a tunneling proxy, and a content filer proxy server. All of these different type servers provide different functions and features.

Many public proxy servers will accept unencrypted information and this can create a security risk because the data could be collected and thus make it vulnerable. It is important that those who use proxy servers know the integrity of the proxy servers they connect to, which is why the use of a private proxies with a good reputation is advised.

In some cases, malicious proxy servers have been intentionally set-up to record all unencrypted data and this data can later be harvested and used by those that have captured it. The key to protecting your personal data is encryption and this applies whether you are on a private or public network and specifically when accessing data through a proxy server. Using an encrypted connection can provide a great line of defense against internet hackers who employ packet sniffers and other sophisticated means of capturing private data.

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Offline or Online We All Need Freedom of Speech

Posted by on Sep 15, 2009 | 0 comments

Freedom of Speech For AllThe American founding fathers put forth the principle of freedom of speech to protect the right of all Americans to freely speak their mind.

In past decades, this concept has been challenged on many levels, but the majority of attacks on freedom of speech have been struck down. We live in a society that heralds this right as a major part of being American. And in fact, this fundamental right is why many other nations around the world look to the United States for guidance in such areas.

The US is respected and revered for its principles in this area, and it is the foundation on which a truly democratic society is built.

Although the right of freedom of speech was developed in large part to protect the freedom of the press, with the advent of electronic media and the personal use of computers worldwide, it is now necessary to extend the concept of freedom of speech to these platforms. If a person’s right to gather peacefully, worship independently, and maintain their own opinion applies to all other aspects of life, shouldn’t it be that way online as well?

In reality, the Internet is simply an extension of our social, commercial, and financial medias, and should be awarded the same protections as they enjoy. Although there are those that argue that the Internet allows for an unprecedented level of information dissemination, there is absolutely no reason that this data should be any more scrutinized than what goes on in daily papers, television shows, or on the radio.

This is not to say that there should be no regulation; the Internet simply merits the same level of examination that all other media outlets require.

Having freedom of speech on the Internet is just an extension of having freedom of speech in all other areas of society. Of course, this is not something that should be taken for granted. As with all other forms of media or expression, there are those that abuse this right, and they should always be dealt with accordingly.

On the Internet, the same standards of decency, honesty, and intent should be upheld as is dictated by the law; however, this is where the government’s involvement should end. As is often argued, it should be up to individuals, parents, educators, and scholars to dictate what is or is not appropriate for themselves, not legislators.

There are those that argue that it is unlawful or immoral to allow online visitors to have access to material that some might find offensive. However, just as a consumer can choose whether or not to view a Rated R movie, listen to music with a warning label, or view legal pornography, so too can an individual decide whether or not he will navigate to a certain webpage on the Internet.

In short, freedom of speech is linked to freedom of choice. The majority of Americans would champion both of these rights. Regulating speech on the Internet would be a slippery slope leading to the demise of freedom of speech overall.

Because computers rule so many daily lives, the government’s involvement in legislating its content would undoubtedly open the door to the demise of that very freedom in many other areas of society that the courts have so diligently tried to protect.

Throughout history, the newspaper business, the television and movie industry, and musicians have had to fight for their right to speak their mind. In most cases, they have won. This pattern should be upheld, and freedom of speech on the Internet is the most logical stepping stone in a path to a continued free society.

We are not all lucky enough to live in a country where these freedoms are granted to all, and those of you at risk from persecution would do well to protect your online identity as best possible.

 

 

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The Hidden Dangers of Proxy Servers

Posted by on Aug 23, 2009 | 0 comments

Are you aware that everything you do on the Internet can be tracked right back to your computer through the use of your Internet Protocol (IP) address, which is a code assigned to your by your Internet Service Provider (ISP). This address is unique to you and your connection, at any one time nobody else will be using the same IP address anywhere in the world and logs are kept of who is using what IP address and when they used it. You may already know about your IP address and are doing your best to protect yourself by using a proxy server. A correctly configured proxy server will appear on the Internet to be just another user, even though in reality there could be thousands of people behind it. While it will be possible to track you back as far as the proxy server it will be impossible to go any further.
 
That is assuming it is a correctly configured proxy server and not one run by a malicious webmaster intent on harvesting as much information as possible!  You see when you use a proxy server you are putting a lot of faith in the people running it, and how well do you really know them?  Probably not well at all, I will highlight some of the issues and how you can best avoid them.
 
Firstly how is your data sent? Most public proxy servers work without encryption, this means that any data you send through the proxy server is sent ‘as is’ so if you are typing in your bank login details and password then those will go through the proxy server. So be sure to never visit any sites which require your personal information while using a proxy. This includes your credit card details, so don’t go buying anything over an unencrypted public proxy, if you do you might just as well advertise your card details in the local newspaper.
 
It is not just criminals and hackers who use the information from proxies, you might be quite surprised how many large companies use such a method for market research. If a big retailer sets up an open proxy they can analyse the information going through it, track your buying history and tailor specific marketing campaigns directly at you. This might seem a bit extreme, but it is only an extension of the existing loyalty card scheme, I presume you know that your supermarket loyalty card only exists so they can track your spending patterns?
 
Next go read through the proxy sites ‘Terms and Conditions’ as well as their ‘Privacy Policy’, if you don’t like something or feel even the slightest level of suspicion move on! If at all possible choose a proxy which has a good reputation, one that IT experts use and that has a reputation for being safe.
 
If you are using a public proxy it should be exactly that, completely public, they should not require you to signup, to provide details of any kind. Obviously this does not apply to private proxies where you are paying for a premium service, however still the information a private proxy should collect is no more than that which is needed to bill you for their services.
 
If you consider your online security to have any value consider using a premium proxy service for cloaking your IP address, preferably one which operates with the highest levels of encryption available and which wipes all server logs so there is no record of even your encrypted activities. There are many proxy options available, but in truth very few which are actually worth using!

 

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Tunnelling Proxy Server – Bypass the School or Office Firewall

Posted by on Aug 21, 2009 | 0 comments

I am going to teach you something today, and this is just for your information there is no need to actually try this out. You promise you will not?

OK, really I will not be held responsible for what you do with this information, if you lose your job or get expelled from school that is your fault!

Have you ever been in the office, at school or at a public computer terminal and found your access to a certain site is blocked? Perhaps you wanted to check your Facebook page, or send a couple of Tweets but the page just would not load. Chances are you were behind a restrictive proxy server or firewall which is specifically configured to block your access. You may have already read that you can use a public proxy, or online proxy, to bypass this proxy or firewall. While it is true in some cases this might work, any IT department worth its salt will have blocked this option already.
 
All is not lost however as there is a very neat feature in a rather unique bit of software that might just help you out here, and let you bypass the proxy server or firewall that is blocking you. Unlike online proxies and other proxy software packages Identity Cloaker does not require any installation on the computer you are using it on. You can keep the program on a USB stick, or even email it to yourself and run it from your home drive. Once running the program’s unique way of working will allow it to walk right through many Firewalls and give you a nice open connection to the Internet to do with as you please.
 
Now it is possible, if you have a good IT department, your activities will be seen, however it would still be impossible to see what you were actually doing as all the data is encrypted.
 
Identity Cloaker has a second small trick up its sleeve to help you here too; you may have noticed that programs like SkyPE often work in an office environment even though firewalls are setup. This is because SkyPE hides its traffic to make it look like standard Internet traffic. Identity Cloaker has a similar cloaking technique in that it hides its connections by using a more common port to create its tunnels through the firewall. Now because SkyPE is such a common program it is easier to find it on the network and to deal with it, very few IT departments will know about the unique power of Identity Cloaker.
 
I am not saying using Identity Cloaker will guarantee you Internet access from work or school, but its more than likely it will work. Take out their 10 day trial, install it to a USB stick and try.
 
Oh no, wait, don’t try!  You already promised you would not use this to bypass any proxies or firewalls!

 

 

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Online Security

Posted by on Aug 19, 2009 | 0 comments

The online world is one of two faces, the side where we find what we need, book holidays, save time with online services and generally enjoy ourselves. Then there is the darker side, where individuals and organisations are trying to infiltrate our lives without permission, steal our identities, money and generally destroy everything we worked hard for! So yes while we can say the Internet has given us many things, we must not discount the threats it has produced.

Being safe online these days is much harder than even 12 months ago, the methods deployed by criminals become more taxing and skilful by the day. The speed at which these new hacking techniques are being deployed far outstrips the speed at which patches are released for the software we are all using. Even the most respected browsers from Microsoft and Firefox fall foul to many a threat, despite their respective parent companies spending millions of dollars on development. It is therefore even more vital these days to be proactive in your attempts to thwart online criminals, relying on your free antivirus software alone is only going to lead to disaster these days!

Perhaps the most common, and most dangerous, system infiltrations involve key loggers and hidden P2P applications. A system compromised in this way will be working as a server, distributing pirate software or pornography to other users around the world. This takes place without your knowledge, and often with your anti-virus software still running! This is because the program has altered the way your Virus package works, so it reports it is working but really it is not. At the same time key loggers on your computer will record every thing you type, every login, every email, all your bank details will be recorded and sent back to the criminals.

Always ensure you are running with a software firewall on your computer, and preferably a hardware firewall on your modem or router too. These of course must both be setup correctly, if they are configured to allow all traffic then they are effectively not there!

Further you should ensure you are running a complete Anti-Malware package, this will cover virus, phishing, adware, key-loggers and Trojans at the same time, the better packages will include full firewall capabilities in the same package. Ensure you computer is fully patched, which these days requires you to be running with licensed software. Never use pirate copies of operating systems or Anti-Virus products, it may sound like obvious advice but it is amazing how many people trust their online security to the very people who do most of the hacking in the first place!

Finally install IP changing software with encryption technology so as to hide yourself online, as if they can’t find you they can’t attack you!


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