Are you tired of signing up with a website and having to give out your email? Well you don't have to anymore. I will discuss the reasons for having a temporary email and where to find one. I assume all of you have had spam and if you are like me you have been spammed to near death from different websites. Your information is collected online and sometimes sold to different companies and people so that they can offer to sell you something and so that they can advertise to your email address. If you have ever signed up with something online that is free or claims to be and shortly afterward you start finding your inbox flooded with spam and advertisements this is for you.
That one company you signed up with gave your information to another company and then they gave or sold it to another one. Also anonymity comes into the picture if you don't want every spam and advertising company in the world knowing your email and who you are. So in order to make it so this does not happen you would give a temporary email to them upon signing up or just use it whenever they ask for a email. It will not be your personal email and you will not have to worry about spam. The good thing about temporary email is that you can usually make it up along the way. Just keep in mind you might need to remember it for future use.
So when giving a email you would give bobsemail@mailinator.com.
Now the @mailinator.com is the temporary email address service. All you have to do is go to mailinator.com and type into the box "bobsemail" and it will pull up your email. There are many of these services and some are so well known that websites will not accept emails with that format. So the best way to use this is know a few that you can use. Some of these services and usually most of them delete the email after a period of time. Use your imagination when thinking of an email to give and you will have endless email accounts that never give out personal information about you and never get you spammed to death. Use these and you will be even further untraceable. Here is a list of my personal favorite temporary email services:
Mailinator.com
Tempinbox.com
Mytrashmail.com
Mailexpire.com
Maileater.com
There are many more, just do a google search for "temporary emails" and you will find a list of different services you can use depending on your preference.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Cookies And Temporary Internet Files
You would truly be amazed at the amount of data your browser keeps about you and the files it keeps for later browsing. Your browser is the program you use to surf the internet whether it is Mozilla Firefox or Internet Explorer. There are things called cookies which are tiny files kept on your hard drive for many reasons. One of which keeps track of your surfing habits and keeps information about you and certain websites you visit. They are sent by a web server or internet site to your computer for information in regards to your visit and future visits by usually each website you visit. Say you go to a online website where you can purchase a number of items.
If you have cookies enabled and close the browser and then open it again and go back to that website, your shopping cart still shows the items you selected through the cookie stored on your computer.
These have been a concern for your internet privacy in the past as they keep track of your browsing habits. Some of the information they have stored in the past is not entirely accurate and therefore has been a source of targeting for hackers and network attackers. They do allow you to be tracked by surfing habits. These are not viruses and really have no use except for that. Also there is internet information stored on your computer usually in temporary internet files in the windows directory. This information stores pictures and other objects. These files are used to access websites faster in the event you go back to a website you have already visited as those pictures on the website are already stored on your hard drive and do not have to reload. If you disable the cookies keep in mind some websites do not work properly with things such as a shopping cart. Most browsers allow you to turn off cookies and block them completely if so desired or only temporarily.
So to keep anonymity we don't want to have cookies enabled permanently and what I would suggest is to have them deleted after you close your browser. For those more paranoid than that I would choose to block them permanently as they will not have access to your computer and surfing habits. I use Mozilla Firefox and the way to turn them off is by going to the tools tab at the top of the browser. Next go to options and from there to the privacy tab to choose to accept them when browsing or to not have them access you at all.
I would also suggest changing your browsing history in the privacy tab as the history is usually kept by default for 90 days, which is a long time. If anyone gets on your computer or it is confiscated, keep in mind all this information is accessible unless set otherwise. If you choose to have no history stored make sure you know the website addresses of your most common websites so you don't forget where something is located on the internet. Follow these guidelines along with using a proxy to surf the internet and you will be virtually invisible to every website you visit. They will not know who you are and will not be able to track your habits. This is one more step to being untraceable online.
If you have cookies enabled and close the browser and then open it again and go back to that website, your shopping cart still shows the items you selected through the cookie stored on your computer.
These have been a concern for your internet privacy in the past as they keep track of your browsing habits. Some of the information they have stored in the past is not entirely accurate and therefore has been a source of targeting for hackers and network attackers. They do allow you to be tracked by surfing habits. These are not viruses and really have no use except for that. Also there is internet information stored on your computer usually in temporary internet files in the windows directory. This information stores pictures and other objects. These files are used to access websites faster in the event you go back to a website you have already visited as those pictures on the website are already stored on your hard drive and do not have to reload. If you disable the cookies keep in mind some websites do not work properly with things such as a shopping cart. Most browsers allow you to turn off cookies and block them completely if so desired or only temporarily.
So to keep anonymity we don't want to have cookies enabled permanently and what I would suggest is to have them deleted after you close your browser. For those more paranoid than that I would choose to block them permanently as they will not have access to your computer and surfing habits. I use Mozilla Firefox and the way to turn them off is by going to the tools tab at the top of the browser. Next go to options and from there to the privacy tab to choose to accept them when browsing or to not have them access you at all.
I would also suggest changing your browsing history in the privacy tab as the history is usually kept by default for 90 days, which is a long time. If anyone gets on your computer or it is confiscated, keep in mind all this information is accessible unless set otherwise. If you choose to have no history stored make sure you know the website addresses of your most common websites so you don't forget where something is located on the internet. Follow these guidelines along with using a proxy to surf the internet and you will be virtually invisible to every website you visit. They will not know who you are and will not be able to track your habits. This is one more step to being untraceable online.
Friday, January 16, 2009
How To Securely Delete Files And Why You Should Do It
Now I will discuss why it is usually good to securely delete your files and data to keep more anonymity to yourself and well.... your hard drive. When you delete something and send it to the recycle bin or empty the trash it never really deletes the files. In essence what it really does is deletes the directory to where the files were located. There are many programs than can un-delete or recover a previously thought to have been delete file. One that I have used personally is called System Mechanics and this program will look for and usually find files that should have been deleted. In reality those files are still located on the hard drive and are rendered inaccessible by a search for them without the proper knowledge and application.
There are numerous computer forensic programs that will bring back the dead by recovering and usually even completely restoring the file for full use and access. Everything on your hard drive is technically still there. So how do we go about really getting rid of this data. Well there are ways of making this data unrecoverable and how the program works is, basically it writes over the storage space where they were located with a series of 1's and 0's usually randomly. The number of times it writes over this storage space is what determines whether or not someone will be able to access the deleted file. The more times you overwrite the data, the better. I would suggest at least 7 pass wipes to securely and remove the data so it cannot ever be accessed in the future.
So how can we go about really deleting the deleted?
There are many programs but personally I recommend my favorite once more called eraser. You can choose how many times you want to overwrite the data. It does take some time to do this to a larger file so keep that in mind. Also I would highly recommend using this program to "erase" your free hard drive space as it will overwrite all the extra space that data use to be stored on.
You can download the program here. If you have ever pirated music or anything similar I would highly recommend this tool for your own safety and If you ever give away your computer I would suggest using it as well so the new owner doesn't learn how to pull up your previously thought to be erased data. This program will securely remove the data you are looking to really remove and is quite nice in my opinion.
There are numerous computer forensic programs that will bring back the dead by recovering and usually even completely restoring the file for full use and access. Everything on your hard drive is technically still there. So how do we go about really getting rid of this data. Well there are ways of making this data unrecoverable and how the program works is, basically it writes over the storage space where they were located with a series of 1's and 0's usually randomly. The number of times it writes over this storage space is what determines whether or not someone will be able to access the deleted file. The more times you overwrite the data, the better. I would suggest at least 7 pass wipes to securely and remove the data so it cannot ever be accessed in the future.
So how can we go about really deleting the deleted?
There are many programs but personally I recommend my favorite once more called eraser. You can choose how many times you want to overwrite the data. It does take some time to do this to a larger file so keep that in mind. Also I would highly recommend using this program to "erase" your free hard drive space as it will overwrite all the extra space that data use to be stored on.
You can download the program here. If you have ever pirated music or anything similar I would highly recommend this tool for your own safety and If you ever give away your computer I would suggest using it as well so the new owner doesn't learn how to pull up your previously thought to be erased data. This program will securely remove the data you are looking to really remove and is quite nice in my opinion.
How To Spoof Your MAC Address
I will now discuss what a MAC address is and how to spoof it. A MAC address is more commonly referred to with wireless communications and WIFI internet. MAC stands for Media Access Control that is basically a number that is assigned to your wireless ethernet card, usually assigned to the card by the manufacturer as a physical address. For security reasons and to remain anonymous even more when surfing the net with a wireless card we will want to spoof our MAC address.
Another useful reason for this is Wardriving which is basically hacking into wireless networks at random while driving. If you are on a wireless network the mac address is used to indetify you and your internet connection. With that information the person with access to the router can block you from connecting to their wireless network by blocking the MAC address. But by spoofing your MAC address you can reconnect as it will see you as a different person and machine connecting. For wireless networking MAC addresses are like IP addresses with a wired ethernet connection in that they are the machines address and source of identification on a network. So if you wardrive or are on a wireless network the MAC address information is quite relevant. Your MAC address will look something like this:
1A-2B-3C-4D-5E-6F
In order to spoof your MAC address I would recommend my favorite program which is called SMAC. It can spoof your mac address quite easily with the click of a button. It can also use random MAC addresses. There is a huge list of different hardware to choose from to spoof your MAC address to as well. You can google SMAC and find it to download and use. Another program is MAC Makeup which will do the job for you as well. And like always keep in mind to not use this for illegal purposes but for something like a prank on your roomate as I did.
Another useful reason for this is Wardriving which is basically hacking into wireless networks at random while driving. If you are on a wireless network the mac address is used to indetify you and your internet connection. With that information the person with access to the router can block you from connecting to their wireless network by blocking the MAC address. But by spoofing your MAC address you can reconnect as it will see you as a different person and machine connecting. For wireless networking MAC addresses are like IP addresses with a wired ethernet connection in that they are the machines address and source of identification on a network. So if you wardrive or are on a wireless network the MAC address information is quite relevant. Your MAC address will look something like this:
1A-2B-3C-4D-5E-6F
In order to spoof your MAC address I would recommend my favorite program which is called SMAC. It can spoof your mac address quite easily with the click of a button. It can also use random MAC addresses. There is a huge list of different hardware to choose from to spoof your MAC address to as well. You can google SMAC and find it to download and use. Another program is MAC Makeup which will do the job for you as well. And like always keep in mind to not use this for illegal purposes but for something like a prank on your roomate as I did.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Phishing And How It Works
In this article I will describe how phishing works. What is phishing you ask? Well it has nothing to do with catching those slimy things that swim in lakes and streams. Basically what phishing consists of is looking for information about someone and basically fishing for information. The term phishing is the term that is used to describe sometimes illegal ways and legal ways to get information from or about someone with the intent of causing harm or getting revenge or sometimes just pulling a prank.
The way one would phish and the more common way when referred to phishing usually ends up in describing someone digging through someone else's trash for bank records, account numbers, bank statements, billing information, phone records, bills and any other personal information regarding the victim. You would truly be amazed at the information people put in the trash and the ways others can use it against them. Another way of phishing is by stealing someones mail and using it for the same purpose. You might be thinking what someone can do with that information but honestly these days it is so easy to set up a scam or con someone into something with very limited information. Thieves have imagination and too oftenly use it for the wrong purposes and all they need is just a little information. If you have ever been scammed or seen an unknown charge on your credit card you have probably been a victim of phishing.
So how do we avoid this from happening to us? It is really quite simple and only takes a few efforts to accomplish. First of all shred any documents that you throw away from the mail. I would personally recommend shredding anything that contains your address and name on it. You also will want to buy a cross shredder as the single shredders don't shred the paper good enough and with time and effort it can be put together again. By cross shredding it, it basically shreds it into squares making it impossible to put back together.
I would also highly suggest using a P.O. box instead of your home mail box as it is easy to steal your mail and many do so. When you leave home on vacation or for more than a few days have someone pick up your mail as well. Have someone you know and trust pick it up also. Remember to never leave mail laying around too.
I would also suggest not ever giving out personal information over the phone and internet unless completely necessary. This is only a suggestion but it all makes a difference.
Another personal suggestion is to have your contacts listed on your phone or cell phone so that only you know what they mean. A lot of people lose their phones or have them stolen and when they do all that information is up for grabs for any deceiving purpose the thief may have. I personally will change the names around to be a nickname or use just the first letter of a family member. I will also use something ridiculous that the contact reminds me of. People who have used my phone have no idea who the contacts are and only I know. By doing that anyone that steals or finds your phone will not have that personal information.
By following these steps you will not fall a victim of phishing and will have more privacy and snoopy people or neighbors will fail in their attempts.
The way one would phish and the more common way when referred to phishing usually ends up in describing someone digging through someone else's trash for bank records, account numbers, bank statements, billing information, phone records, bills and any other personal information regarding the victim. You would truly be amazed at the information people put in the trash and the ways others can use it against them. Another way of phishing is by stealing someones mail and using it for the same purpose. You might be thinking what someone can do with that information but honestly these days it is so easy to set up a scam or con someone into something with very limited information. Thieves have imagination and too oftenly use it for the wrong purposes and all they need is just a little information. If you have ever been scammed or seen an unknown charge on your credit card you have probably been a victim of phishing.
So how do we avoid this from happening to us? It is really quite simple and only takes a few efforts to accomplish. First of all shred any documents that you throw away from the mail. I would personally recommend shredding anything that contains your address and name on it. You also will want to buy a cross shredder as the single shredders don't shred the paper good enough and with time and effort it can be put together again. By cross shredding it, it basically shreds it into squares making it impossible to put back together.
I would also highly suggest using a P.O. box instead of your home mail box as it is easy to steal your mail and many do so. When you leave home on vacation or for more than a few days have someone pick up your mail as well. Have someone you know and trust pick it up also. Remember to never leave mail laying around too.
I would also suggest not ever giving out personal information over the phone and internet unless completely necessary. This is only a suggestion but it all makes a difference.
Another personal suggestion is to have your contacts listed on your phone or cell phone so that only you know what they mean. A lot of people lose their phones or have them stolen and when they do all that information is up for grabs for any deceiving purpose the thief may have. I personally will change the names around to be a nickname or use just the first letter of a family member. I will also use something ridiculous that the contact reminds me of. People who have used my phone have no idea who the contacts are and only I know. By doing that anyone that steals or finds your phone will not have that personal information.
By following these steps you will not fall a victim of phishing and will have more privacy and snoopy people or neighbors will fail in their attempts.
How To Spoof Your IP Address And How It Works
In this article we will discuss IP spoofing. IP stands for internet protocol and is basically a number assigned to your computer when it connects to the internet by your ISP ( Internet Service Provider). Your ISP is the company you get internet through whether it is with your cable or with your phone they are the ones who assign your IP address for internet use. Your IP address is basically an address for your computer similar to your mailing address for your home. The IP address can be used for many things in the modern world and I would give caution with using it. I would recommend using a proxy as much as possible regardless of your browsing habits as hackers and other people online like to grab your IP address and use it for attacking your computer, putting viruses on it and a myriad of other reasons.
Almost every single website you visit has a log and in that log is a record of the different IP addresses that visit the webpage. With this information they can know where you are located and if it is a law agency they can easily find out who you are and much more personal information about you. Many people have been contacted by their ISP as a warning for what they were downloading whether it be movies or music. Usually a law enforcement agency will contact your ISP and ask for records and logs of visited websites if they are suspicious of your internet activity. And then depending on whether they want to warn you of press federal charges they will have your ISP warn you or just show up at your door at the wee hours of night or morning.
So knowing that and how our IP address seriously affects our privacy and surgfing habits I would recommend spoofing it on a consistent level for personal privacy reasons. I do not condone or recommend using it for illegal purposes as you will pay the price eventually. So how do we go about spoofing our IP adress? There are a number of ways to do this so to start the most simple and easy way to do this is by using what is called a CGI proxy.
Basically how a proxy works is instead of asking for a website from our internet service we connect to another internet service and ask them for the information. Basically the request to visit bobspage.com would be redirected through the proxy server and we would receive the information through them and then instead of directly from our ISP. This is also known as bouncing your IP address. This is how a proxy works and proxy basically means to go through. A CGI proxy means COMMON GATEWAY INTERFACE proxy. It is basically an online website that offers a proxy in such a way that all you need to do is go to the CGI proxy website and type in the website you are trying to access spoofed. A lot of ISP's have blocks on certain websites and the same goes with school and work computers. With a CGI proxy you go to its page, enter the site that is blocked you want to visit and you will be taken their through their server unblocked.
Here are a list of CGI proxy websites: (if some don't work they sometimes are taken down for different reasons usually regarding legality issues, do a google search for there are lots and lots of them). Keep in mind that by using a proxy it will almost always slow down your internet speed since it is rerouting the request and it is usually rerouting it through an offshore server which takes time to relay the requested information and website.
Proxylord.com
Isoproxy.com
Becomehidden.com
Megawebproxy.com
Peekatwork.com
Beatfiltering.com
Proxify.com
Razorproxy.com
Proxyfoxy.com
Pagewash.com
Proxymyspace.cn
Sneak2.net
Anonymouse.org
Freeproxysite.com ( a list of more cgi proxies )
The second way to spoof your IP address and the way that I like, is to use a separate program for the task. Personally I would recommend using TOR for the job. It installs into windows and integrates itself into Firefox with a button at the bottom right hand corner of Firefox. All you have to do is install it and click that button and you are anonymous and using its proxy. Another good thing about TOR is that it is offshore located in germany and it is free to use and download. By it being offshore if they were required to give logs and records to a law enforcement agency it would ultimately make things harder for them and a lot of times different countries will not cooperate and if so the process drags on for some time. I would recommend JAP but there is a topic and debate on a backdoor they had years back in which they were giving record information out to law agencies.
The last way I would suggest using a proxy and a little more difficult way would be to set up a computer as a firewall and share its internet connection with your surfing machine. In essence you would set up a dummy computer to hook up to the internet and would run the internet through that machine into your personal use computer with an added ethernet card or by bridging the connections. I would not suggest this over a proxy unless you know what you are doing as it requires another computer and slightly slows the connection speed though not as much as the other described methods. To be sure the proxy is working go to whatismyip.com and check your original IP address. Afterwards when you start the proxy or use the CGI proxy to go that website and it should show something quite different and then your IP address is spoofed. Happy surfing.
Almost every single website you visit has a log and in that log is a record of the different IP addresses that visit the webpage. With this information they can know where you are located and if it is a law agency they can easily find out who you are and much more personal information about you. Many people have been contacted by their ISP as a warning for what they were downloading whether it be movies or music. Usually a law enforcement agency will contact your ISP and ask for records and logs of visited websites if they are suspicious of your internet activity. And then depending on whether they want to warn you of press federal charges they will have your ISP warn you or just show up at your door at the wee hours of night or morning.
So knowing that and how our IP address seriously affects our privacy and surgfing habits I would recommend spoofing it on a consistent level for personal privacy reasons. I do not condone or recommend using it for illegal purposes as you will pay the price eventually. So how do we go about spoofing our IP adress? There are a number of ways to do this so to start the most simple and easy way to do this is by using what is called a CGI proxy.
Basically how a proxy works is instead of asking for a website from our internet service we connect to another internet service and ask them for the information. Basically the request to visit bobspage.com would be redirected through the proxy server and we would receive the information through them and then instead of directly from our ISP. This is also known as bouncing your IP address. This is how a proxy works and proxy basically means to go through. A CGI proxy means COMMON GATEWAY INTERFACE proxy. It is basically an online website that offers a proxy in such a way that all you need to do is go to the CGI proxy website and type in the website you are trying to access spoofed. A lot of ISP's have blocks on certain websites and the same goes with school and work computers. With a CGI proxy you go to its page, enter the site that is blocked you want to visit and you will be taken their through their server unblocked.
Here are a list of CGI proxy websites: (if some don't work they sometimes are taken down for different reasons usually regarding legality issues, do a google search for there are lots and lots of them). Keep in mind that by using a proxy it will almost always slow down your internet speed since it is rerouting the request and it is usually rerouting it through an offshore server which takes time to relay the requested information and website.
Proxylord.com
Isoproxy.com
Becomehidden.com
Megawebproxy.com
Peekatwork.com
Beatfiltering.com
Proxify.com
Razorproxy.com
Proxyfoxy.com
Pagewash.com
Proxymyspace.cn
Sneak2.net
Anonymouse.org
Freeproxysite.com ( a list of more cgi proxies )
The second way to spoof your IP address and the way that I like, is to use a separate program for the task. Personally I would recommend using TOR for the job. It installs into windows and integrates itself into Firefox with a button at the bottom right hand corner of Firefox. All you have to do is install it and click that button and you are anonymous and using its proxy. Another good thing about TOR is that it is offshore located in germany and it is free to use and download. By it being offshore if they were required to give logs and records to a law enforcement agency it would ultimately make things harder for them and a lot of times different countries will not cooperate and if so the process drags on for some time. I would recommend JAP but there is a topic and debate on a backdoor they had years back in which they were giving record information out to law agencies.
The last way I would suggest using a proxy and a little more difficult way would be to set up a computer as a firewall and share its internet connection with your surfing machine. In essence you would set up a dummy computer to hook up to the internet and would run the internet through that machine into your personal use computer with an added ethernet card or by bridging the connections. I would not suggest this over a proxy unless you know what you are doing as it requires another computer and slightly slows the connection speed though not as much as the other described methods. To be sure the proxy is working go to whatismyip.com and check your original IP address. Afterwards when you start the proxy or use the CGI proxy to go that website and it should show something quite different and then your IP address is spoofed. Happy surfing.
How To Spoof SMS (text messages)
In this article we will talk about SMS spoofing. SMS means "Short messaging service" and is the protocol cell phones use to send text messages to eachother. In other words SMS is your technical name for text messaging. To spoof means to appear from somewhere or someone else than the original and true number so basically by spoofing a SMS message the receiver of it will not know it is from you and basically you can make it appear to come from any number you want. Use your imagination with this one because it is quite fun. The real problem is that they usually cannot respond to your message as most of the SMS spoofing services are offered online. If you want them to be able to respond I would suggest using a fake email to send them a SMS message and then they can respond and you can talk back and forth with the cell phone you are sending messages to.
So in order to spoof a SMS message we need some providers that can spoof the message for us. Remember not to use this illegaly as I am sure your IP address is logged in their records for use should you do something illegal. If you wish to remain completely anonymous you can use a CGI Proxy to spoof your IP address or use a separate program so they will not have your real IP address. For information on CGI Proxies and spoofing your IP address look to that section on this page.
Here are some SMS spoofing services that you can use for free:
Fakemytext.com
Hoaxmail.co.uk
There are others if you do a google search and look around for a bit.
Now the other way to do this is with a temporary of separate email than yours. You will send the message to their cell phone and they will see the email but not know who's it is. How do you send a SMS to a phone number you are asking. Well it is pretty simple actually. It all depends on their provider. This requires you to know their cell phone provider. If it is verizon for example you would send the message to 1234567890@vtext.com and the first part is their number followed by the providers texting service address. By doing this they can respond to the message sent and you can have a conversation. Below are listed the different providers services you would send the message to.
Verizon: 1234567890@vtext.com
Sprint: 1234567890@messagin.sprintpcs.com
Tmobile: 1234567890@tmomail.net
Virgin mobile: 1234567890@vmobl.com
Cingular: 1234567890@cingularme.com
Nextel: 1234567890@messaging.nextel.com
And this is the simple way to spoof SMS.
So in order to spoof a SMS message we need some providers that can spoof the message for us. Remember not to use this illegaly as I am sure your IP address is logged in their records for use should you do something illegal. If you wish to remain completely anonymous you can use a CGI Proxy to spoof your IP address or use a separate program so they will not have your real IP address. For information on CGI Proxies and spoofing your IP address look to that section on this page.
Here are some SMS spoofing services that you can use for free:
Fakemytext.com
Hoaxmail.co.uk
There are others if you do a google search and look around for a bit.
Now the other way to do this is with a temporary of separate email than yours. You will send the message to their cell phone and they will see the email but not know who's it is. How do you send a SMS to a phone number you are asking. Well it is pretty simple actually. It all depends on their provider. This requires you to know their cell phone provider. If it is verizon for example you would send the message to 1234567890@vtext.com and the first part is their number followed by the providers texting service address. By doing this they can respond to the message sent and you can have a conversation. Below are listed the different providers services you would send the message to.
Verizon: 1234567890@vtext.com
Sprint: 1234567890@messagin.sprintpcs.com
Tmobile: 1234567890@tmomail.net
Virgin mobile: 1234567890@vmobl.com
Cingular: 1234567890@cingularme.com
Nextel: 1234567890@messaging.nextel.com
And this is the simple way to spoof SMS.
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