Feb 08 2010
Cleaning My Computer Of Personal Information
As an avid Internet user, I have become increasingly concerned about my personal information that is stored without my knowledge on my computer. I know that hackers can get into just about anything, and I didn't want to become a victim. What's in the dark places on my laptop?
When you visit a website like buy.com, the website automatically stores your information. When you return, you are prompted with a greeting welcoming you, using your name specifically, back to the website. If they can store that kind of information on you, then what else do they have.
I had a big problem with this as I continue to hear stories about identity theft. The last thing I want is to loose everything I have worked so hard for because some slacker didn't want to work for his own dollar.
There are people all over the country who have experienced this problem. I have a friend who received a statement in the mail one day from a computer store. She just thought it was a solicitation for a credit card and was about to toss it. Then she realized that it was a statement showing a balance left on the card AFTER her purchase for a computer.
Knowing that she didn't purchase a computer from this store, she contacted the credit card company. The account was opened via the Internet and a purchase was made with her personal information for almost $1000. They would not tell her where the computer was delivered which was even worse.
My friend canceled the credit card right away and started the dispute process. They would never divulge the address of the delivery and it took her six months to clear this up. You can only imagine her frustration when she decided to cancel all her other credit cards and today she still checks her credit report regularly!
Ward off potential attacks by cleaning all the stored Internet files from you computer. When you click the start menu, find control panel and click that, then go to the Internet options icon, click there and find the "General" page. There you can delete the cache files, temporary Internet files and the history from your browser.
One more file still lurks down in the belly of your computer. It's called a Index.dat file, however, you can not remove it. I'm not really sure why but Microsoft does not allow manual removal of this file so it will sit there until the day your hard drive is wiped clean.
Staying on top of deleting your computer's stored information can be the first step in protecting your personal information. There is a program I have heard of called PC Confidential you might want to look into as well. Just remember, we never think we are going to fall prey to criminals, but do you want to risk it when you might be able to prevent it?
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