James,
To amplify on the excellent recent letter from SoCal titled “Keeping a Low Profile is Crucial for Preparedness”, I have some suggestions that all of us SurvivalBlog readers should implement to keep a low profile in our online activities. Anonymizer and Comprehensive Risk Solutions (both mentioned in the letter) are great ideas. They are cheap insurance. I can also recommend a few other measures, to wit:
1.) Use the Scroogle Scraper for web searches. This allows you to use Google through an intermediary site. That way Google cannot create a profile on your searches. On background: Google is notorious for data mining,a nd they have publicly. stated that they plan to archive all search histories for 30 years! They look at this mountain of data as an “asset” that they can market at a later date.
2.) Install the Zone Alarm firewall.
3.) Get the Stopzilla anti-spyware software.
4.) Either learn how to manually clear your “cookies” and bits of “history” from your PC, or download software such as Free History Eraser (from Blue Chilies) that does so automatically.
5,) If you have a wireless access point (WAP) for your house or place of business, then be absolutely sure to put a Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) password on it. Better yet, go further and use Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) encryption–since WEP can be cracked–and configure your WAP so that it is not visible to anyone that is not on a pre-approved list. In recent years, all sorts of riff-raff have been “piggybacking” on open networks. Everyone from malicious hackers to kiddie porn addicts drive around (“wardriving”–as shown in the YouTube mini-documentary), looking for unsecured wireless networks. Don’t be a victim! Regards, – C.D.