15-Minute Reviews :: My Privacy v3.5

Today’s 15-Minute Review is on My Privacy Online version 3.5 by Smart PC Solutions, Inc. This application claims to find private information on your system and dispose of it.

Software Description

As Giveaway of the Day states:

“My Privacy – is a software application intended for probing the confidential information stored on your computer on its vulnerability to unauthorized access by hackers. Your computer may contain private information which you have long forgotten about. These may include your credit card information, login names, passwords as well as cookie files tracking your Web surfing habits.

The My Privacy software finds all personal information and suggests its unrestorable erasure. The software also evaluates the level of your privacy protection and proposes ways to maximize it. Please bear in mind that no antispyware will save you from information theft. You need to be aware of what and where sensitive information is stored on your computer and purge it on a regular basis thus making information theft useless. Stay on the safe side!”

Quick Pros

• Easy one-button to start application
• Scheduler functionality
• Fast scanning

Quick Cons

• Appears to be essentially a browser cleaner
• Did not find any personal information, even loaded file
• Installs icon on desktop to encourage you to buy other products
• Pop-up upon closing application trying to get you to buy Smart PC

Expansion

Upon your first launch (and each subsequent launch), you are greeted by a great big ‘Analyze Privacy’ button with a smaller ‘Help’ link. Upon clicking the large button, you are brought to another window, with a privacy level indicator in a percentage level (The testing one was 47% here), 5 buttons down the left side for information on webpages visited, cookies, private info, temporary files and graphics. To the right of this is information pertaining to whichever area you are in. Below this you will find three buttons; One to re-analyse, one to wipe all information and one to get help. There is an Options button above as well.

There is a scheduled scanning function in the application, found in the Options, if you want this ran at regular intervals; There is some options as well to help you set up.

The scanning process quickly reveals information on all the tabs, except for private info. On the test system auto-complete for forms is disabled, so it went enabled to test further. Signing up at a few test sites to get auto-complete fields populated, still nothing showed up in that area. Dropping a text file on the desktop. called my personal information.txt filled with name, address, phone number, credit card numbers, maiden name and SSN, and still nothing. It appears that this application is essentially a browser cleaner.

During install of this application, you will find that it installs an icon that says ‘Click to Find and Fix PC Errors’ above the My Privacy icon, linking you to buy Smart PC as well. On top of this, when you close the application, you get another dialog box up for trying to get you to buy Smart PC again (At least this box can be disabled with a ‘Don’t show this window again’ checkbox in this window).

Final Verdict

It cleans your browser, and that seems about it. It never did find any personal information, even planted in the browser in the auto-complete areas or in a blatant text file on the desktop. For free, there is no point on getting this tool – Most browsers come with a way to delete your history. If you want a good freeware alternative, check out CCleaner. As for paying $29.95 for this title, I can’t recommend it at all.

Posted by BladedThoth on Monday, March 10, 2008