On Cookies and Online Privacy

For faster loading time our system and internet browsers store a lot of information so we won't have to bother to retype it time and again. Cookies are temporary files which store all internet related information, i.e. websites visited, images viewed, data downloaded. All such information is saved on your hard drive. Next time you visit the same site, you do not have to repeatedly download the data.

The recently visited site URLs are stored in the address bar of the Internet Browser (usually Internet Explorer). Keywords typed on the search engines are also saved for our convenience. History stores all the recently opened documents and files. Windows Temporary folder saves temporary files. All this is for our convenience, but can prove to be harmful if the same information is passed on to someone else.

One should be more careful when multiple users share the same computer. The traces of activities can be tracked down more easily in such a scenario. This can be fatal if delicate and sensitive information becomes accessible.

Privacy Sentinel helps in erasing all the evidence of computer and Internet related activities. Internet history, the history of applications and documents used, the recent data accessed, URLs in the address toolbars, and deleted files in Recycle Bin are some very important traces that Privacy Sentinel permanently eliminates from the system. In that process you also free hard drive space.

Privacy Sentinel does a dual job of maintaining system and user privacy and freeing some space on the hard disk. In a few simple clicks, you can regularly delete privacy-exposing traces from the system and keep your online privacy secured.

How to run a Scan?

The Privacy Scan is divided in 5 simple steps:
1. Welcome
2. Scan
3. Results
4. Clean
5. Finish

Step1: Welcome

The Welcome screen of Privacy Sentinel allows you to initiate the Privacy Scan to detect traces of Internet history and of major applications used. It thoroughly scans all sections of the system and identifies the traces that can compromise the user's privacy.

The Welcome screen also displays the last scan summary, the last scan date, total traces detected and deleted; and also lets you view the estimated space freed in the last scan.To start the process of scanning, click on 'Start Privacy Scan'.

Step2: Scan

After initiating the scan Privacy Sentinel analyzes the system in its entirety for detecting such traces. The system has been divided into four categories for your convenience: Windows, Browsers, Messengers and MS Office.

Step3: Results

Once the scan is complete, the scan results are displayed in a table. Traces detected have been segregated under different sections. They can be viewed under the 'Show All' section, or their respective sections.

You may check the items to be removed from the system and click on the 'Clean' button. This will take you to the next step.

Step4: Clean

The selected traces are permanently removed from the system. In case you want to stop the cleaning in between, you may click on 'Cancel' button.

Step5: Finish

Congratulations! Your PC is clean from online traces.
In the last step, the cleanup summary is shown. The space recovered after the cleaning process is also displayed.

Settings

The scan can be customized using various setting options provided under the 'Settings' tab.

Scan Options

The system has been divided into 4 categories : Windows, Browsers, Messengers and MS Office. Each category covers up various sub-categories. You can select the categories to be scanned as per your needs and preferences.

Windows - Under this category, the following areas are thoroughly scanned to detect any traces that may compromise your privacy.
• Start Menu
• Windows System
• Recent Activities

Browsers - Traces by the following applications are being scanned:
• Internet Explorer
• Firefox
• Google Chrome
• Safari
• Opera

Messengers - Traces by the following applications are scanned during Privacy Scan:
• Windows Live Messenger (aka MSN Messenger)
• ICQ
• Yahoo Messenger
• AOL Messenger

Microsoft Office - Traces by the following applications are being scanned:
• MS Office 2010
• MS Office 2007
• MS Office 2003
• MS Office XP
• MS Office 2000
• MS Office 97

General

Under General Settings, there are three options given to manage the application execution. Check the desired options and click on 'Apply' button to save the changes.
'Run Privacy Sentinel when system starts' Check this option to run Privacy Sentinel at Windows startup.
'Auto start Quick Scan on application launch' Check this option to automatically start the Quick Scan as soon as the application is launched.
'Move deleted files to Recycle Bin' Check this option to move the deleted traces to Recycle Bin.

Schedule

Scheduler helps to schedule automatic privacy scans that do not require any user intervention. The scan will run on the predefined day, date and time automatically.
To set the schedule, click on the Schedule tab. It will open the Scheduler, from where you can set the schedule. You may set the time of the scan by using the various options given.

Options to schedule scan:
'Every Day' at a specified time
   OR
'Run Once' on a specified date (can be set using the calendar dropdown) and time
  OR
'Every Week' on specified days at a particular time (check-mark the days of the week for automatic scan)
  OR
'Do Not Schedule' scan (undo the scheduled scans) Every time you schedule a scan, it is necessary to click on the 'Apply' button to save the changes you have made. The next scheduled scan is displayed at the bottom of the screen. You can also view all the scans scheduled by clicking on the link 'All Scheduled Items' in the left panel.

Fix the errors automatically:

If you want the errors detected in the scheduled scan to be fixed automatically after the scan is complete, check mark this box. Shutdown PC automatically after fixing errors: If you want the system to shut down automatically after the detected errors are fixed, check mark this box.