Addendum

Addendum

Newbies are to ignore this page. If you try any of this, don't blame
me if you screw up your registry and end up with a computer that
will not boot.
But I would advise newbies to do a search in Google for BACKING UP THE
WINDOWS REGISTRY, or RESTORING THE WINDOWS REGISTRY.
To everyone else, what I'm saying here applies to my Windows 98SE machine.

When I first started these pages over a week ago, I was pretty much like most others in that I thought "security " came in a packaged program. Sadly, I've learned better. Windows truly is a most insecure enviornment.
I have found that despite using the best eraser programs, there are files that will still betray your private matters. For instance, there is the registry file, User.dat, which you cannot edit. The file name of any file you access can show up in there, and, seemingly, there isn't a damn thing you can do about it.
But I have also found what seems to be somewhat of a compromise solution for this by using an encrypted volume - Scramdisk, to hold my private matters. I keep my financial information and other personal matters hidden on this encrypted "disk. " (A much more secure way is to encrypt the entire disk with PGP. With a fully encrypted disk you don't have to rely on erasers or other "security " gimmicks.)
It seems you simply cannot keep private matters from appearing in User.dat. Any time you create files, or access old ones, some of them will appear in User.dat. It also seems that after you create new files and then "hide " them in an encrypted volumn such as Scramdisk, Windows forgets about them after a session or two, removing them from User.dat. It could also be that when I compact my registry the names of these "hidden" files are treated as invalid deadwood and discarded.
The rub is that each time I mount my encrypted volume and use these files again, their file names will reappear in User.dat. But after another Windows session or two, each followed by compacting the registry, these file names seem to disappear once more. I'm brought to the conclusion that through the compacting process these files names really are construed as being invalid, since they can no longer be found.
As to protecting yourself from User.dat's penchant of storing info, some people think that wiping the Temporary Internet Files folder, the Recent files folder - along with other telltale leftovers helps. I'm not too sure it does. I've seen file names come in or go from User.dat whether or not I wiped these tattletale temp folders. I think wiping these has more to do with keeping nosey people from seeing what you were doing, rather than whether or not User.dat will pick them up. User.dat writes the information inside itself during a Windows session, not afterwards. You can check this for yourself. Just use Wordpad to peek into User.dat when you first open windows; then after you have operated for a period of time, do another search through User.dat for some of the files you accessed during the current session.
None of what I have said is gospel, but this is how it seems to work most of the time for me. In no way am I pretending to be a Window's guru. I only know what cut and try measures have accomplished for me.
One gimmick I use to safeguard User.dat is that when I have a User.dat that is " free " of any file names I consider to be of importance to my privacy, I make a copy of the Windows system files with a program called Uninstall Manager. When I meet a time that I'm having an abnormal degree of difficulty ridding User.dat of those pesky filenames, I use Uninstall Manager to reload my older System.dat and User.dat. That gives me back a "clean" User.dat. This program allows me, not Windows, to dictate which past version of User.dat gets loaded.
Make sure you backup your System.dat and User.dat after you install a new program.
If you do not yet have a "clean " User.dat, check it each time you begin a new Windows session. If for a session or two you can keep from accessing files you wish to remain private, you will soon find a "clean" version of User.dat that can be saved.
I don't worry too much about System.dat. I have not seen the same type of private information cropping up in it as I have in User.dat. But I do load both of them together each time I want to recover a " clean " User.dat.
All of what I've said above are the maunderings of one who is totally ignorant of the finer points of Windows and its registry. I only know what has worked for me.
I would once more caution newbies to NOT screw around with any of this. Chances are you will make a mistake and end up using your computer as a door stop.

Go back to menu on HOME page.
- END -