Employees: How To Clear Your Internet Browser History. Employers: Why You Want To Monitor And/Or Restrict Internet Usage.

Dear Geek,

I browse the Internet at work (during my breaks, of course).  Someone recently told me that the computer keeps a record of what I look up on the Internet.  I don’t want work to know I surf the net on my breaks.  Where is that record, and how can I wipe it out?  

Signed,

Just Browsing

Dear Just Browsing,

When you surf the ‘Net, each page you view is saved locally on your hard drive.  Your computer does this, because next time you visit that same website, the page will load faster by loading the files from your hard drive instead of having to download the website from scratch again.  To conserve hard drive space, or to keep their Internet browsing private, users may find it necessary to delete their Internet History.

INCOGNITO MODE:  If you feel the need to clear your Internet History often, you might want to consider browsing the Internet in “Incognito Mode”.    This is alternatively referred to as “Private Browsing”, “InPrivate Browsing”, “Private Window”, or less formally as “Porn Mode”.  Incognito Mode prevents any information from being stored locally on the hard drive (ie. when you visit any website, the text, video, etc that is loaded, or viewed, is stored on the computer.  In addition, any searches or forms that are filled out are stored in “AutoComplete” fields).  NOTE:  While in “Incognito Mode”, while nothing is stored on your computer, it doesn’t mean you are invisible to the internet.  Each page you visit will still recognize your IP address.

     Internet Explorer Users:  

Keyboard Shortcut = “Ctrl” + “Shift” + “P”

Or

1.  Click the “Safety” drop down menu.

2.  Click “InPrivate Browsing”.

     Chrome Users:

Keyboard Shortcut = “Ctrl” + “Shift” + “N”

Or

1.  Click the “Wrench”  or “Menu”  icon in the top right corner.

2.  Click New “Incognito Window”.

     Firefox Users:

Keyboard Shortcut = “Ctrl” + “Shift” + “P”

Or

1.  Click “Tools”

2.  Click “Start Private Browsing”.

DELETE FROM ADDRESS BAR:  To individually delete items from your address bar, in the “Address Bar”  press the “Shift” + “DEL”.

VIEW YOUR INTERNET VIEWING HISTORY:  Click “Tools”, choose “Internet Options”.  Click “Settings” button under “Browsing History”, then click “View Files”.

TO DELETE YOUR INTERNET VIEWING HISTORY:  Press “Ctrl” + “Shift” + “DEL” to open the “Clear Browsing History” window.   OR Click “Tools” menu, choose “Internet Options”, and click “Delete Files” or “Delete” button.  Internet Explorer users also have the option of automatically deleting files each time you close the browser window by clicking the “Advanced” tab, and check the box next to “Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed” under “Security”.

Following the steps above should clear your browsing history, and your conscience.  That said, you should check your workplace Internet Usage Policy.

BUSINESS OWNERS AND/OR EMPLOYERS NEED TO PAY ATTENTION:

What’s the harm in a little personal Internet surfing and emailing at work, on breaks or otherwise?  If you’re a business owner, you don’t want employees surfing the net, and checking out unauthorized websites.  Doing so can put your computer security at risk!  If you have employees with unmonitored access to email and the Internet, there are a number of activities they can participate in that can harm your business:

 1.  Bandwidth Costs:  Heavy graphics, video clips, and audio files are particularly notorious for clogging digital pipelines.  If your staff is emailing photos of their family vacations to their friends, paying bills online, or downloading music, they are using up a huge amount of expensive bandwidth and slowing down your organization as a result.

2.  Legal Liabilities:  70% of all Internet porn traffic occurs during the 9-to-5 workday (SexTracker), and 27% of Fortune 500 companies have been accused of sexual harassment stemming from inappropriate email and Internet usage.  The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that companies can be held accountable for their employees forwarding offensive messages and viewing pornography.

3.  A Damaged Reputation:  A lawyer at a London firm forwarded email he received from a female acquaintance to several co-workers as a joke.  Unfortunately, they sent it on the a few of their friends and within a short period of time, thousands of people from around the world, including the press, received it.  Because of this email, the law firm ended up in a huge controversy that hurt their image and credibility.

4.  Loss of Production:  Email and the Internet offer a temptation that is hard to resist.  That’s why 73% of employees who use the Internet are fully aware that they are consuming valuable bandwidth and hampering critical business activities with inappropriate Internet usage – but do it anyway (see the letter above).

5.  Viruses and Spyware:  Employees can accidentally (or intentionally!) download harmful viruses and spyware through music files, screen savers, and other online files.

To find out what your business can do to protect your organization, call Technology by Design for an Email and Internet Usage Analysis.

If you have a question for our Resident Geek, send it to:  geek@tbyd.ca.  We’ll translate it from Geek-lish to English, so it actually helps!