I thought I would share some of what I use. Here is a little tutorial...
You should be using Firefox since it is the securest browser out there. This little tutorial will show you how you can enhance it.
In the URL bar type in: “about:config†and hit enter then click “I’ll be careful, I promise!†Note: only change what is instructed here. Type in the bar: “rc4†double click on all the lines that say true to make them false. Why do this? It will force secure https connections to use AES 256 bit encryption and not the inferior RC 124 bit.
Now delete “rc4†in the bar. Type in “network.http.sendrefererâ€. Double click the “2â€. Type in “0â€. Why do this? This will prevent the browser from sending to other websites where you are coming from.
You are now done with the configuration. Delete “network.http.sendrefererâ€. Exit out of the configuration by closing the browser or by going to a website. You are now going to add three extensions. Go to tools and click on “add ons†then click “Get Add-onsâ€. Click browse all add-ons. In the “search for add-ons†box type in “BetterPrivacyâ€. In the “within†box select “Privacy & Securityâ€. Now click the arrow. The extension picture should look like a piece of pie with a circle over it with a line crossing it. Add BetterPrivacy. Why add this extension? This extension will delete “super cookies†automatically. Super cookies are flash based cookies that cannot be deleted just by clearing your regular cookies. You probably have hundreds or thousands of super cookies dating back since you first connected your computer to the Internet.
Now to configure BetterPrivacy. After you add it and restarted your browser, go to “Tools†in your browser and select “BetterPrivacyâ€. Click the “LSO Managerâ€. Press “Automated search†if the cookie folder is unkown. Click “Remove All LSO’s†Now click the “Options†tab. Select “Auto-delete Flash-cookies at application startâ€. Select “Auto-delete Flash cookies on application exitâ€. Select “Auto-delete Flash cookies by timer†Select time interval of “1†and change it to “secondsâ€. You can also select the “Also auto delete flash default cookie†if you desire. Click “ok†at the bottom when done.
The second extension you should add is “Customize Googleâ€. Go back to the section to browse for extension like you did for “BetterPrivacyâ€. Type in “Customize Google†in the “search for add-ons boxâ€. The within box should have the “Privacy & Security†selected. The extension picture should be a paw. Add this extension.
Now you are going to configure “Customize Googleâ€. After you restarted Firefox, go to “Tools†and select “CustomizeGoogleâ€. You can remove ads in various sections and customize it to the way you prefer, however, I will only deal with what relates to your privacy. Click “web†then select “Remove click trackingâ€. Click “News†and select “Remove click trackingâ€. Select “Gmailâ€. Click “Remove Ads (if you do not want them). Do not click “switch to https†option since Gmail offers the option to enable an https session in your settings and in doing so could conflict with your Gmail settings because of this – same for Google Calendar, Docs, Reader, and History. Click “Blogs†Select “Remove click trackingâ€. Select “Privacyâ€. Click “Anonymize the Google cookie UID†and “Don’t send any cookies to Google Analyticsâ€. Now click “ok†at the bottom.
BetterPrivacy and CustomizeGoogle all work under the hood. You do not need to adjust anything aside from just updating them when it calls for it.
The last but certain not the least extension is NoScript. Why add this extension? To be blunt, this extension is very important in protecting your privacy and security as you browse the web.
This extension has the symbol of an “S†with a circle and a line through it. Add this extension just like you did with the previous two. After you restarted FireFox you will now notice the NoScript symbol in the bottom right-hand corner of the browser. Click that and select “optionsâ€. Click the “Whitelist†tab if it is not already selected. Remove “googlesyndication.com†since you do not need this. Now click the “HTTPS†tab. Click“Cookiesâ€. Select “Enable Automatic Secure Cookies Managementâ€*. Click “OK†at the the bottom.
You are done configuring NoScript. You will notice this extension working. I will show you how to use it. Go to youtube.com and select any video to watch. You cannot watch them yet. But click on NoScript Options. You will notice all the scripts being forbidden. Click “allow youtube.com†and then click “allow ytimg.comâ€. Then click outside the options are somewhere on the website. You can now watch videos on youtube. Those two scripts are all you need to watch videos on that site. Now since you “allowed†those two scripts they are added to the Whitelist. You can close the browser and then open it again and go back to youtube.com and the site will automatically work without having to accept anything again. You can also temporality allow scripts which means that they will no longer be allowed once you close your browser. You do not need to visit the website in order to allow the scripts. You can just go to option and select the “Whitelist†tab and add them there. You should add sites that you trust and frequent a lot. Usually you need about two scripts per website to make it work correctly like You Tube. For Myspace add “myspace.com†and “myspacedn.com†to the whitelist. For Facebook add “facebook.com†and “fbcdn.net†to the whitelist. Remember you do not need to “Allow all this page†or “Temporality allow all this page†since it usually is only a couple or so scripts needed to make the website work. The rest of the scripts being blocked by NoScript are mostly just ads and analytics.
*“Enable Secure Cookie Management†secures your cookies. For an example of this, if you have Gmail then log into your account without having the secure cookie management option enabled. Your Gmail account should already have the automatic https option enabled. Now click on docs. You will notice that it is also https enabled. However, click on “Tools†in your browser. Select the “privacy†tab. Click “Show Cookiesâ€. Double click on the docs cookie. Click on the sub cookie. Read the description and you will notice it says for “any type of connection†in the “Send for†area. If you log out and clear your cookies and then log back in while having enabled secure cookie management then it will say “Encrypted sessions only. By securing your cookies you will prevent cookie hijacking. If someone hijacks your cookie then that person can go through and read your documents without having to have your password.
By the way, if you want private google web searching you can go to scroogle.org and click on the padlock on the bottom to encrypt your searches as well.
Enjoy!
How to browse the Internet securely.
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ChimeraCreative
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