Do you remember a time, long ago in our past, when one had to go out to buy something and bring it home? It seems like a crazy concept, but it really happened. People drove their cars to a sort of vending center, where they exchanged monetary units for perishables and other items. They would then buy enough to last them for some time, and when they needed more, they would head back again and again. Someday kids will read about this very outdated practice in their history textbooks. All joking aside though, the idea that one would actually go out to a store to buy something is becoming obsolete. These stores have fewer users than they did fifty years ago, even with a larger population. The world of explosive technology has penetrated nearly every aspect of life, and shopping certainly under that umbrella.

People’s lives around the globe|world] today, especially those of the United States citizens, are of a highly mobile type. We use our cars to go anywhere, work a whole bunch of separate shifts to augment our bank accounts, and have more entertainment in our house than does a whole circus. Consider going out to the movies in the present day; in the prehistoric days, before the VCR player, you would have to buy a ticket for the theater playing at your time. Now you can simply download movies temporarily whenever you choose by taking your pick from an on-demand service. Our homes these days are like the best place to relax and have fun; it almost defeats the point of going out. This self-containment is a must today though because we have more going on in our lives than ever before.

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With all the advantages the Internet has brought comes a new kind of crime. Internet crime is at an all time high. Thieves have learned that this is an easier way of robbing their victims than ever before. All they have to do is gain access to a person’s connection to the Internet and it is possible to take their identity or their money. This is being committed even as you are reading this article. Accessing someone’s bank account, credit cards and other personal information through the World Wide Web is the way a thief can get by with his crime with the least likelihood of getting caught. Gone are the days when going on the Internet was not threatened by the possibility of malware and spy ware. When a thief gains access to your Internet connection, all the information you are sending on that connection is out in the open for the taking. Bank account numbers, credit card numbers – all manner of personal information – is no longer safe. How do you take steps to keep this from happening? One of the best ways is to have an anonymous proxy server. This is one solution to keep thieves from gaining knowledge about your connection to the Internet and in turn keeping your information safe.

What is an anonymous proxy, you may be asking? First of all, there are two types of anonymous proxies. The one that most people use is the web-based. This is because it is simple to find. All that is required is a search on the Google site for “anonymous proxy” and a vast amount of results will be shown. Choose one of the results and go to the site. An empty URL box will be shown and you need only type the web address of the place you want to visit. The anonymous proxy will then take you to this address without showing your IP address. When you leave the website there will not be a record of your having been there. The anonymous proxy acts as a combination protection and retrieval tool. It gets the website for you and keeps anyone from accessing your IP address. Your IP address can tell a thief where you are located. How many people do you want to know your name?

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For years now we’ve warned people about the need fro privacy and how lack of privacy can lead to identity theft.  Many people think it can’t happen to them.  This You Tube video shows otherwise.  One expert hacker stole 130,000,000 credit card numbers.  Was one of them yours?

One of the issues raised in the video is the use of debit cards.  Again, for years we’ve been telling people not to use debit cards.  They do not offer the same protections that credit cards do.

However, the main item to take away from this, is that protecting your identity, and your privacy, is up to you.  You need to be proactive.  Think through the issues and put safeguards in place so that you do not wind up as a victim.

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“I thought I was being smart, slick and protecting myself and my information online.  It gets dull at work, and the company that employs me monitors what sites are visited at each computer station.  So, I would access the shopping sites by anonymously surfing the Internet.  I couldn’t be tracked that way. I believed any tracking cookies would be deflected by the free online proxy service.  So, I purchased a few items by credit card, and visited a few other sites, logging in with my screen name and password, feeling I was safely, anonymously surfing.

How wrong I was.  Two days later I received an email from my credit card company informing me my credit card was maxed out.  This was followed by another card being used to its limit.  Then I received another email thanking me for my business.  Supposedly, I had borrowed five hundred dollars.

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