I have had an inkling for some time that my wife may be "spying" on me (late night phone calls to me when I'm on the road, confirming with airlines that I actually flew somewhere, etc.)  Because she is fairly computer illiterate I never suspected she would use the computer to track me.  Despite that, I quit using my home computer for anything other than innocent use a while back.  Now however I think she is considering installing some sort of Spyware on our home computer.  

My concern is whether this software, or any other software, can detect what I have done in the past. I also would not put it past her to take my computer to a computer expert to discover what may exist on the system.  I used to use Yahoo Messenger and archive old messages.  I have deleted the archived messages.
I have always cleared history and cache files in my internet browser, but I understand that may not be enough.  If that is not enough to cover up past tracks, what can I do now to cover up past tracks?  Any help or info is appreciated

I think I know where the relationship is headed, I just don't want her to have any extra ammunition when the time comes

-- Modified on 9/3/2003 11:51:47 AM

Deleting, shredding, purging, none of it wipes it from the hard drive completely. There are software programs, though, that claim to remove info from computers and leave not a trace. I have no experience with them, but I'm sceptical.  The quantity and quality of info that can be retrieved from a hard drive depends entirely on the expertise of the operator retrieving the info and the sophistication of the equipment used.  Your best bet, if possible, is to "steal" the computer at issue, and replace it with a brand new one with no bad memories.

If you have your browser's autocomplete on, there will be an extensive record of things that you've typed; difficult but not impossible to find. Spyware can be detected, there are a number of freeware packages out there to check your system (do a search on google). If you use IE then flush your cookies as well [sounds nasty, doesn't it ] as removing all locally cached files, clearing the history and turning off auto-complete.

-Shiro

Yes, software exists that can track earlier activity on your machine.  Wipes don't help.  Buy a new computer and reinstall your software.  Dump the old one in the trash after using a hammer on the hard disk.  If you are concerned about what you indicate, this will be cheap in the long run...Harry

Clearing the history and cache files will only erase the link to that information. While that will make it slightly harder to find, the information is still on your harddrive. The same goes for formatting, and yes, there are programs that will recover deleted files. The only way that these files will not be recoverable is if they have been overwritten, and I believe that the computer overwrites files randomly (you can't choose which files to overwrite).

There are programs that claim to permanently "erase" files. I'm not sure how well these work, especially if she takes the computer to someone skilled at recovering data. Your best bet, if at all possible, would be to invest in a program that completely overwrites your hard drive (government specifications say data should be overwritten at least seven times before it becomes unrecoverable).

Option 1:

Try U-Wipe

http://www.u-wipe.com/

It is not perfect, but it does OK.  

Option 2:

If you are really paranoid, back up all your important files, wipe the computer using a low level format and start again with a fresh install.  Maybe it is time to upgrade to Windows XP?

As to the recovery of data on your disks, It is possible to collect residual files using computer forensics tools.  While I have not had a reason to do it myself, I have seen it done at conferences and seminars.  A low level format will do the trick (this is not the same as a format performed by an operating system, like windows or linux).  Most hard drives come with software to do this.  If not try using a wipe package, like the one at http://www.whitecanyon.com/wipedrive_overview.php before reinstalling the OS.  If you need an excuse, back up your data and delete your Windows/System32 directory.  Say a virus did it.  That should give you plenty of reason to reinstall.  Especially since your computer will stop working

Tw1st

Try this.

Thanks for the info.  I have windows XP.  What can I do with XP that will help?

-- Modified on 9/3/2003 2:26:33 PM

Thanks for the info.  I have windows XP.  What can I do with XP that will help?

Windows XP provides more "features" to track you with then earlier versions of Windows.  If you want to cover your tracks against the average user, then any one of the privacy tools mentioned in this thread will likely work.  I would pick a free one and use it when I go someplace I do not want other to know about.  Now there are keyboard recorders that cost around $20 dollars that these pieces of software will not defeat (http://www.tbotech.com/key-katcher.htm ).  Not to mention remote screen capture software and who knows what else.  

If you want to protect yourself from an analysis by an expert, then wiping the disk with a low level wiping tools, reinstalling the operating system and do not go anyplace naughty with that computer.  Use only trusted equipment that you have complete control over and no one else accesses.

-- Modified on 9/3/2003 3:55:19 PM

Impossiable, the airlines will not give out that information.

One less worry for you.

Hugs,

Tammy

-- Modified on 9/3/2003 8:08:19 PM

This is not exactly true if you are a member of a frequent flier plan.  When I fly, I can check to see if the miles have hit my account usually within a couple of days.  If she knows his account numbers she could see his flight activity.  It does not post unless you complete a flight.  As for my airline/computer, my account/activity is remembered without a login.  However, this is a feature that I chose to use as I am single and am the only one who logs on to my computer.

I'm directed to a generic page where I'm supposed to enter more information.

The botton line is this:

If you are dealing with a "shared" computer with multiple users, it's very difficult to keep others from being able to gain information on what you've been doing.

At best, you're being careful to delete files, caches, cookies, histories etc etc (the list is huge). But it's human nature to slip up and forget. It will happen. And besides: you gotta keep your collection of porn somewhere!

At worst, if another user has access to your computer and is bent on tracking your activity, it's extremely difficult to stop them. People on the Internet can break in to computers from 1000's of miles away. Imagine what can be done with physical access to the computer.

Treat it like a personal item and you'll be fine. This means getting your own. Think of it as a toothbrush. You wouldn't want anyone else using it. Explain this away by saying that it is your personal "work" computer. A "personal" computer is a reasonable expectation for any professional.

Some other hints:

a) Use a real operating system (Win2k/WinXP/Linux) - Not Win95/98/Me.
b) Make sure that WinXP/Win2k requires a passworded login to allow access. Use a good password and don't give anyone else access. With WinXP home edition, you gotta tell it explicitly that you want the higher level of security.
c) In the BIOS, disable booting from a network device, floppy disk or CDROM (only boots from hard drive). Password protect the BIOS setup itself as well.
d) Slap on a small lock on your computer case so it cannot be opened.

These steps are reasonable and easy enough. You now have a reasonably secure computer.

Beyond these steps, one can implement various encyrption schemes. Some very secure solutions can encrypt everything on a hard drive and require a seperate physical token to enable usage. This is overkill for most though.

All of this can secure your computer. The network is a whole other ball of wax!!

If you have a hacker wife (heh), she could very easily be sitting in the next room logging all of your internet traffic (down to every password you use for websites including TER). Guarding against this is not as straight forward as what I described before. Your best bet is to get a small Network Router (Linksys or Netgear) with SWITCHED Ethernet ports. The switched ports are very key as they make snooping in on the network traffic more difficult. Going to websites with SSL (the little lock and key at the bottom of your browser) also helps keeps traffic private from snooping eyes. In fact, it would be really cool if TER offered SSL access.