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A lot of us love surfing the web because we can be whoever we want to be and no one knows who we really are. You post on message boards under

different names, some of us even like to be multiple characters at the same time, and we can act out whatever we want under the veil of secrecy

and privacy, right?

As far as knowing your real name, you are probably right, if you don’t tell them, they won’t know. However your internet activities are far

from anonymous and your preferences of content are far from private, here’s why.

Did you know, your ISP (Internet Service Provider) records all the sites your IP (Internet Protocol) address accesses. If you visit some

unsavoury sites this may become an issue if the content you access crosses legal boundaries for either taboo or copyright infringement reasons.

You may have some real problems in the near future if you’re not careful.

Another problem is that on the other hand, websites that you visit can actually track your IP for a variety of reasons from the relatively

harmless exercise of gathering data on your internet activities for marketing goals to the very real and very scary reason of identity/credit

card theft and/or to hack your computer.

You may think your identity and details are perfectly safe but if someone really wants them, all they have to do is link your IP to your ISP

which they then access to find out all they need about you.

This can happen to people who least expect it, including you!

HOW CAN YOU PROTECT YOURSELF???

Hiding your IP address is the only way to really keep your internet activity (including browsing history) totally secret.

Hiding your IP address
is done by using a proxy server which is totally independent from your actual ISP. The proxy server acts as an intermediary between you and the

website you are visiting basically protecting your internet identity from these sites as the website now only deals back and forth with the

proxy server, not your ISP, therefore hiding your unique IP.

Be aware however, that the proxy server will know your IP, so choose wisely!

There are two main proxy server solutions to consider; Website based proxy service and Software based proxy service.

Website based proxy service – A website based proxy service works by the user going to a website that is linked to a proxy server. You simply

enter the URL of the website you wish to visit with a hidden IP and it takes you there through the proxy server. Website based proxy servers

are a good quick-fix or short term solution but they offer minimal data protection and encryption services and they cannot access sites that

use SSL (Secure Socket Layer) or SSE (Secure Shell Encryption) such as order forms or financial institutions.

Web based proxy servers are good of you are at work and you want to view blocked sites such as Myspace or Facebook, but pretty much nothing

beyond that for a long term solution. Web based are usually free and due to their limitations, they should be. If you paid subscription to one,

chances are you’ve been ripped off. http://www.sweetproxies.com is a good place to start if you are looking for a free website based proxy

server.

Software based proxy service – A software based proxy service works by the user installing software that runs with your current internet

browser. This option is recommended because unlike the website based proxy service where you actually have to manually enter every URL you want

to visit through their website, a software based service will work with your browser running all your internet activity through a proxy server

giving you the most complete and secure solution (along with 24-7 effectiveness, software based services also encrypts all data being

transmitted, something the web site based service does not).

As I just mentioned, a software based solution is a lot more comprehensive and much safer than the free website based options, this usually

means that software based solutions come with a subscription fee that ranges from $30/lifetime to ridiculous amounts of around $10/month.

Again, it all depends how much you need this service. As I said earlier web based proxy services are great at work to check Facebook, but if

you really want your IP hidden, therefore your identity and surfing habits protected you need a software based proxy service.

HOW TO FIND THE RIGHT SOFTWARE BASED PROXY SERVICE???

As with any downloadable software purchase you really need to know what you are installing on your PC as there is a lot of rubbish out there

asking you for your cash, and software based proxy services are no exception, from overpriced to ineffective – it’s all out there.

1) Research the company, Google is a wealth of information from company background to other users’ experience it’s all recorded so make sure

you do your homework. Only when a company passes the Google test should you consider it further.

2) Not all services support every protocol (FTP, HTTPS, and HTTP) so make sure the one you download meets your requirements.

3) Good software based proxy services will set up a TLS or SSL tunnel for your use. This is further protection which stops network sniffers

from viewing and tracking your internet activities.

4) The software based proxy service you choose should go further that just hiding your IP, it should also remove scripts, cookies, banners,

pop-ups and referrer data. This will give you complete protection. Don’t worry though; you can adjust settings to protect the sites you require

cookies, scripts and other elements for.

While everyone’s needs are different and one’s fantastic solution can be total rubbish to another, I will tell you that I use Hide-My-Ip 2009

Why? Because a lifetime membership is under $30 (which is what some products cost you for a month) uses 128-bit SSL encryption (which is great

for wireless as well), fake locations to go with the fake IP’s to really confuse hackers, it supports all browsers, it allows you to send

anonymous emails from web based email services
(such as hotmail and Gmail) and it also hides your IP address when you are gaming online (which is great for me).

Best of all, you can try it FREE!!! No Risk, No wasted $$!!!

At CyberJoes-PC-Help.net You will find free tips, tricks and articles to SPEED, CLEAN & OPTIMIZE your PC (Saving you $$)as well as software reviews and recommendations.