datacoupinc:

The default for data sharing at nearly any bank or large company that traffics in personal data is “opt-in”. This is offensive.

GetCocoon For Internet Security & Privacy   

(Source: youtu.be)

Cocoon is now on Pinterest! 

For occasional surfers

Last year Internet activist Eli Pariser spoke at TED about how popular search engines like Google uses data it collects on what we click and when we click it. What if you were curious about how bombs are made or about how terrorists operate? Could the information that you search for today cause Big Brother to kick you in the head tomorrow?

Maine State Rep, Diane Russel recently wrote at The Huffington Post that with the advent of social media we are watching our privacy rights disappear at a faster clip.

The monitoring, tracking and even surveillance is so ubiquitous that most people don’t even realize it is happening. If they do, there are few solutions being presented, and it truly begs the question, “What can I do about it?” —Maine State Rep, Diane Russell

Do you ever wonder how much information you may unknowingly give away on the web? With the Mozilla collusion browser plugin you can view a digital map of where you have browsed and who is tracking you. If you are as shocked by the results as I was - Time Magazine has eight great ideas for protecting your privacy online.

The Cocoon Team!

(Source: blog.getcocoon.com)

We’re very excited to announce that Cocoon is now available on Apple’s iPad and  iPhone devices! Now you can enjoy the same level of privacy and protection that Cocoon has brought to your computer, while on the go! With smartphone malware, public wi-fi sniffing, and mobile identity theft on the rise, it’s essential that Cocoon users are able to browse securely from any location.

Why it’s Important

A recent survey by Javelin found that 7 percent of U.S. adult smartphone owners have been victim of identity fraud. Furthermore, it is said that as much 24 percent of mobile devices reported malware infections in 2011 (PC Advisor). Mobile malware, like its desktop counterpart, has been known to send malicious text messages, location, or even log keystrokes. The Cocoon app will help protect users from a growing mobile concern: the drive-by malware download.

Perhaps the most alarming issue posing a threat to those browsing from a mobile device is the man-in-the-middle attack. This type of attack is carried out on public wi-fi networks, where users generally browse the Internet over an insecure network with a roomful of strangers. Any one of those strangers could potentially intercept sensitive data and information through what is called a man-in-the-middle attack. In addition to intercepting bank login info, email messages, or credit card details, the attacker may hijack your online accounts; giving them access to all of your personal information.

This is why Cocoon has brought it’s encrypted browsing technology to the mobile platform. With the amount of mobile browsing increasing at the rate it is, it’s becoming very important that we protect ourselves wherever we go.

Fun Tip

Did you know that the Cocoon app will allow you to create disposable email addresseson the go? Just think, you’re signing up for something online, but you really don’t want to be barraged by all that spam mail. When prompted to enter an email address on youriPad or iPhone, simply tap the email field a second time and the “Mailslot” option appears. Hit the button and voila, Cocoon has presented you with a disposable, fully anonymous email address just for that website. Now all the mail that site sends you will be delivered to its own Mailslot box available on all of your Cocoon apps, wherever you go!

The Cocoon Team!

People choose Cocoon to browse privately, secure and virus free. When it comes to exploring the vast oceans of the Internet, we do so with the comforting knowledge that Cocoon is protecting us. Our team has spent a great deal of time contemplating the next step in Cocoon’s evolution, and have gone right to the source of Internet exploration itself: the search engine. Your typical search engine will gladly have you searching the web through them, and for good reason. They want to know what you’re up to, what you’re searching, and where you’re going. Do these search engines respect and promote your privacy? Absolutely not.

Well, Cocoon does, so we figured you deserve to search the web in a manner that promotes privacy and security. That’s why we’ve partnered up with blekko. Searching with blekko is the best way to ensure that absolutely no search click-tracking data is being saved. What better way to browse safely and privately than to couple that experience with tracking-free searches?

Not only will blekko deliver a more private web search experience, but one with better search results. Each search will sort the far reaches of the Internet using slashtags and trusted human-derived search results. Typical search engines use algorithms to deliver results, which are subject to pulling material from content farms and people gaming the search system. With blekko, web searches will yield a differentiated editorial voice, one with accuracy and no hidden agenda. Learn more about blekko here.

We’re excited to provide Cocoon users with a built-in web searching experience that matches our philosophy on privacy. It’s your Internet; keep it private and secure.

You can read more about what Cocoon has to offer at The Daily Caller.

Josh on Twitter  |  Cocoon on Twitter  | Cocoon on Facebook

Every move you make on the Internet is being monetized by the advertising ecosystem.

Already, the web sites you visit reshape themselves before you like a carnivorous school of fish, and this is only the beginning. Right now, a huge chunk of what you’ve ever looked at on the Internet is sitting in databases all across the world. The line separating all that it might say about you, good or bad, is as thin as the letters of your name. If and when that wall breaks down, the numbers may overwhelm the name. –The Atlantic

Alexis Madrigal of  The Atlantic, recently begged the question “Who’s following your every move on the web, and what do they want from you?”  Madrigal recorded a 36-hour period of standard web surfing with Mozilla’s tool Collusion (a tool that collects data about the companies that are collecting data about you), and recorded 105 companies that were collecting information on his web travels.

AS USERS, WE move through our Internet experiences unaware of the churning subterranean machines powering our Web pages with their cookies and pixel trackers, their tracking code and databases. We shop for wedding caterers and suddenly see ring ads appear on random Web pages we’re visiting. We sometimes think the ads following us around the Internet are “creepy.” We sometimes feel watched. Does it matter? We don’t really know what to think. --The Week 

Advertising $$$’s

The purpose for all of this online snooping is singular: Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Apple, Facebook and others are intent on delivering more relevant online ads to each and every one of us — and bagging that advertising money. —BYRON ACOHIDO | USA Today

Internet users should be informed that there are tools available, such as Cocoon, that give Internet consumers control of their private information and places a roadblock against online tracking.

When you browse the web it is easy to leave traces of yourself littered along the Internet highway and the potential for  meeting up with an unsavory site or getting hit by a drive-by-download  is a dime a dozen these days.  

Today, the virtual threat landscape needs more protection than an antivirus suite or antimalware application.  Many exploits utilize 3^rd party browser plugins (Flash, Adobe Reader) and if your operating system or browser has a vulnerability – it can easily become an open door to hackers.

Cocoon offers a better way to view the web without fear of drive-by-downloads, malvertising or malware messing with your hard drive. Cocoon works by securely connecting over any network to Cocoon’s servers, providing enterprise-grade virus protection and encrypting all interactions to prevent cookies and other tracking.

Currently Cocoon is available for both Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer and offers a free version (ad-based) and the new Cocoon+ version via an ad-free subscription-based plan and currently is being offered for the special price of $2.99 USD per month until midnight on April 15.

Cocoon advantages:

1. Antivirus scanning of downloads 
2. Encrypted browsing history
3. Anonymous IP address
4. Malware blocking
5. On-the-fly disposable e-mail addresses
6. Secure public Wi-Fi

Take the Cocoon tour today!

Our goal has always been to offer people a way to access the web safe from viruses, theft and tracking.

Over the past several months we’ve added support for Internet Explorer and increased the speed and stability of the service by increasing bandwidth and servers. We’ve made the same real-time virus scanning available to everyone, that was once only available to large corporations, and we are now waiting for Apple to approve Cocoon for iPhone and iPadso we can share all these Cocoon features with iOS users.

Obviously, it takes money for us to continue to provide and grow the Cocoon service. To help with funding, we’ve begun to serve advertising while you browse within Cocoon. As always, inside Cocoon we do not use cookies or track your browsing history. We do not share your information with third-parties nor do we allow third-parities to place their tracking technologies within the Cocoon service.

We will continue to find ways of offering Cocoon as a free service available for all, and will be launching Cocoon+ in the near future, for an affordable way of browsing privately, ad and interruption free.

Stay tuned – there are many more good things coming from Cocoon!