Mac® Security Bible

10.7. Browsing Anonymously

The previous section discussed how to make sure your Mac doesn't keep detailed records of what you've been doing on the web. But even if you turn off every sort of logging on your Mac, delete every cookie, and use cleanup software to erase every last trace of your activities, none of this hides what you're doing from the servers on the other end — or anyone who can observe Internet traffic between your computer and a server. To make it as unlikely as possible that anyone could figure out who you are or to connect web visits to you personally, you can take a number of additional steps to mask your identity as you browse.

I should point out, though, that all the anonymous browsing options I cover here involve compromises. In many cases, browsing speed is reduced considerably, some site features that depend on being able to identify you uniquely may not work, and the mere fact of using these techniques may raise the suspicions of anyone who may be monitoring your web activities. Whether or to what extent you use these techniques depends largely on how you weigh anonymity against convenience.

10.7.1. What information you normally reveal

To reiterate and expand on what I said earlier in this chapter, you can reveal a great deal of information about yourself when you visit a website, including any or all of the following information:

• Your IP address (which can be used to determine your geographical location, your ISP, and other interesting facts about you) ...