The Drawbacks of Anonymous Surfing

BlueCup writes to tell us that one reporter decided to give anonymous web surfing a shot, and found it to be much more trouble than it was worth. Many users take advantage of Tor and other anonymous web browsing tools, but is the amount of hassle worth the effort it takes to remain anonymous?

Comments

Moo

[Chacham]

FTA:

I also had to re-enter a login name and password when I returned to sites requiring registration, like The Wall Street Journal Online. On Amazon.com, I couldn't immediately see book recommendations based on past purchases _ something I enjoy

So use Mozilla/Firefox to prefill the forms.

A prosecutor with a search warrant, or even the other side in a civil case, can get access to your computer and try to retrace your steps.

Not if you erase history.

========

Nothing new here. Just someone complaining that privacy is not worth a slight inconvenience.

"People who are not willing to give up conveniences for the sake of privacy, deserve neither privacy nor sympathy." - Benjamisquoted Franklin

I bet the author votes Democrat.

Re:Moo

[Chacham]

And here I thought people were starting to worry more about their on-line privacy because the Repubican controlled government can't tell a terrorist from a hole in the wall...

Republicans do a better job. Or rather, they do the job instead of just talking about it, and bombing aspirin factories. Unfortunately, the Democrats, used to nothing being done, are suprised to see the government working. So suprised in fact, that they make ad-hominem attacks against the president and others, and scream that every step forward is really three steps backwards. If Bush wasn't elected, we'd still be "negotiating" with the Taliban. Just look at Carter's history of telling Iran not to be afraid. Democrats mean well, but they believe "no pain, even if it means no gain."