Secure Internet Browsing
As you probably already know most browsers like Google, Yahoo and others are all too eager to cooperate with any little government official that comes asking for private search data. This data can and has been saved for many years.
It is true that most data is associated with non-personal characteristics such as "How many people searched for this word - or that word", but some data can be traced back to specific IP addresses (this means you).
This issue is becoming more and more mainstream. For years the "lamestream " media insinuated, and most Sheeple went along with, the notion that "if you have nothing to hide - you shouldn't care who collects data on you". But this is a specious argument at best, at worst it is another sign of the laziness and stupidity of the average person. Be that as it may - we have finally seen a genuine interest in real privacy. Cnet did a well researched story on it and came up with some independent reviews and ratings at: http://news.cnet.com/2100-1029_3-6202068.html
In the CNET Story they did not happen to review IxQuick or Startpage - ostensibly because they are not large enough to rate the top 5 positions.
So now we have options - and in the interest of maintaining your anonymity, and possibly your freedom too. Do NOT use GOOGLE, or YAHOO, or any of the other "popular" search engines. Instead - use a SECURE search engine, like the following....
Startpage - Search Engine
(the following is taken from Startpage "About")
Startpage search engine protects your Privacy! Startpage does NOT record your IP address!
Nor do we share your personal information with any third party. Read more on our privacy position or go directly to Startpage's Privacy Policy.
Startpage offers you Web search results from Google - the world's most popular search engine
When you search with Startpage the Web results are generated by Google. This offers you the search results and search features you may have grown accustomed to.A Unique Combination
On Startpage the privacy of Ixquick is combined with the Web search results from Google. The combination of these two features is what makes Startpage so special.You can continue using the Web results from the world's most popular search engine but now under the privacy protection of Ixquick, the world's most private search engine.
A Trusted Party
Startpage is brought to you by Ixquick, the world's most private search engine. Ixquick has been third-party certified by EuroPriSe, a European Union privacy initiative. On July 14th, 2008 Ixquick was awarded the first European Privacy Seal. Ixquick is the first and only EU-approved search engine (and really....doesn't that make you sleep better at night...)More Privacy Enhancing Search Features
A Proxy ServiceIt allows users to surf the web with complete privacy. The proxy lets users browse websites safely and anonymously, without passing on any private, personally identifiable information to the websites they view.
The URL Generator
To promote a cookie-free internet, Startpage has recently launched a URL generator which eradicates the need for setting a cookie. It remembers your settings in a privacy friendly manner. It can be found at the bottom of the MY SETTINGS page.
Startpage supports SSL (HTTPS)
The servers have been configured to handle HTTP requests over secure and encrypted Secure Socket Layer (SSL) connections. SSL is an encryption protocol that is available in almost all browsers. It establishes a secure connection between your browser and Startpage's servers. Startpage uses SSL to hide your search terms from anyone who might be monitoring traffic between your browser and Startpage's servers. You can activate SSL by using/adding an "s" to "http" in Startpage's address.
https://startpage.com
https://us2.startpage.com/eng/
IXquick - Search Engine
Ixquick is self-advertised, and widely acknowledged as one of the most if not - the MOST private and secure search engine on the internet.
https://www.ixquick.com/eng/
ASK - Search Engine
The answers suggest that, based on the questions we asked, Ask.com was the most protective of user privacy. In fact, only Ask.com said it would not record what users type into its search engine. (Smaller search engines, including ixquick, said this as well, but we limited our survey to the five largest engines.) Ask.com also said it did not engage in behavioral targeting, which refers to the practice of offering advertisements based on previous searches.
http://www.ask.com/
Secure Email
For those of you who want to maintain some level of security in your emails - There is Hushmail.
What is Hushmail?
Hushmail is a secure web-based free email service. Since 1999, millions of people and thousands of businesses have trusted Hushmail to safeguard their secrets.
Hushmail looks and feels just like any other web-mail site, but adds strong encryption to your emails to protect your secrets from prying eyes.Key features see more features…
- Easy-to-use web-based email
- Standards-compliant encryption
- Works on iPhone and BlackBerry
- Optional Outlook integration
https://www.hushmail.com/
