Anonymous browsing for business
You may have heard of anonymous web browsing in relation to surfing the Internet in “less than free” countries such as China. In a nutshell, the typical method of doing anonymous browsing makes it look like another computer is actually doing the browsing. (That other computer - in this role - is often referred to as a proxy server.) Anonymous browsing can enable people to view websites without someone monitoring Internet traffic being able to track who is doing the browsing.
Anonymous browsing can stop the communication of data necessary for traffic analysis. Some services can also either block cookies and scripts - or they advise you how to do so on the computer you’re using. Traffic analysis, cookies, and scripts, while designed for a useful purpose, can tell websites information about your identity - including your general geographic location, IP address, and your Internet service provider. Depending on what information is contained in cookies on your computer, you may also be revealing information about your identity. This tracking can be used to determine what websites you have visited prior to the site you are currently surfing.
When you are typically surfing the web, it is questionable whether some or all of these technologies present any problems for you. In fact, in some cases they can enhance your web browsing experience.
Here are two easy ways to access FREE anonymous web browsing:
(1) thefreecountry.com lists several services that provide FREE anonymous web browsing.
(2) Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)operates Tor - a software download that routes your web browsing through volunteers’ Internet connections thereby enabling FREE anonymous web browsing.
Anonymous browsing can be a useful tool for you as an entrepreneur or consultant. It’s not just for dissidents, spies, and hackers.
I’m not advocating doing sneaky stuff without a purpose or breaking company policies (if anonymous browsing is prohibited by your employer, client, or whoever pays for the computer or Internet connection you’re using).
Here are the two of the reasonably legitimate reasons for an entrepreneur or consultant to use anonymous browsing:
(1) Competitive Research - If you’re surfing a website or series of websites in order to collect information about a competitor, you might not want the competitor to know that you’re showing so much interest in their websites. Browsing from your company location, without using anonymous browsing, can - depending on some technical considerations - indicate to the browsed website what company you represent, which webpages you looked at, and how much time you spent on each page. If you don’t want the other company to know or guess what interests you, consider using anonymous browsing.
(2) Blocked Webpages - You may find yourself either at a location that blocks access to certain webpages. The reasons for this happening can range from paranoid (or cautious) network administrators blocking access to certain websites to being on a business trip to a repressive country that blocks certain websites. Or, you may simply find that - for some unexplained technical reason - you’re having trouble accessing a website from one specific computer or location. In any of these cases (please don’t get yourself fired or arrested), browsing anonymously through a proxy server will usually enable you to access any webpage. Most website blocking techniques cannot block you when you’re using anonymous browsing.
For more in depth information about anonymous browsing, here are two great blog entries:
(1) Paul Ecroyd explains what is anonymous surfing.
(2) EFF looks at anonymous browsing in the context of writing a blog.
Give it a try and jot down the EFF and thefreecountry.com websites - in case you ever need to use it.
All is well.
