Lex 8256: Law in Cyberspace Seminar
Privacy Tools for more pleasant surfing

I promised you some guidance on avoiding, or at least reducing, the unsolicited junk popping up on your computer screens. Here are some useful resources:

• You can find links to a variety of privacy-enhancing software in EPIC's Online Guide to Practical Privacy Tools.

• Privacy.net and the Junkbusters home page have links to tools that you can use to block pop-up ads that appear when you are browsing the web. (Rule of thumb: Be cautious about downloading and installing any ad blocking software without first understanding how to uninstall it since it may slow your connection down to a crawl.)

• If you're seeing pop up ads whenever you connect to the Internet, before you open your email or browser, you probably have "spyware" installed somewhere on your machine. Download and install a program like Lavasoft Ad-Aware software (freeware) to find it and, if you choose to, get rid of it.

• To reduce unsolicited commercial email, take advantage of resources offered by your Internet service provider.
  • Wayne State doesn't filter or block spam, but it has posted a couple of hints on spam-avoidance at http://support.wayne.edu/allwsu/email/spam/index.php
  • If you're a Comcast subscriber, visit http://www.comcast.net/privacy and http://www.comcast.net/memberservices/index.jsp
  • Hotmail has a spam filer that you can activate by going to MSN Hotmail Options after you sign on and opening the "Junk Mail Filter." That won't, of course, shield you from Microsoft affiliate spam, but you can limit the unsolicited commercial email you receive from Microsoft affiliates by changing the default preferences at http://privacy.msn.com/choice/default.asp.
  • I wasn't able to find any information on any spam filtering provided by AOL, but AOL does threaten to prosecute senders of spam. In addition, you can adjust your AOL preferences to limit marketing messages and pop up ads. (Click on the "My AOL" button on the toolbar at the top, then on Preferences. Click on the Marketing button, and uncheck any boxes you don't want. See http://www.bytesandbugs.com/internet/marketin.html for instructions.)

• If you use stand-alone email software, like Eudora, the software may have settings that allow you to filter out spam. For Eudora, select "filters" from the "tools" menu. For other email programs, consult your program's "Help" menu (look for "filter").

• Internet Privacy for Dummies has instructions on Disabling Windows "Messenger" Pop-Up Spam

• The Michigan Attorney General has posted an excellent site devoted to CONTROLLING COOKIES.