Thinking of using sn anonymous server -- probably findnot.  I have a
present news server account with Giganews to access newsgroups.  It is
a very good service but I have to use UN and PW which can lead to my
personal info such as name, address and cc info.  So why use an anon
server?  I realize it can get past my ISP, but once I access Giganews
I must reveal personal info to access newsgroups.  It appears that at
that point all anonymity is gone.  I would compare it to arriving
anonymously at a website only to need to give personal info to
proceed.  I hope I am wrong on this.  Thank you for any help.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

The answer would be to close your Giganews account that you have
identifiable information with. Then, open a new account from a public
hotspot using an anonymous credit card (best bet would be a Visa gift
card which you can pick up at many malls) and pay CASH for the card.
You then sign-up using the Visa card using whatever name, address,
phone number (not correct info obviously). For email,  use a throwaway
account, one-time use Yahoo account, or an email account you ONLY
access through FindNot or a public hotspot. Then, everytime you sign-in
to Giganews, you are signing-in through FindNot and the UserName and
PassWord will match the shadow information given when you sign-up.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

SBN wrote:

> Thinking of using sn anonymous server -- probably findnot.

<snip>

You screwed up already. Findnot is NOT anonymous. They lie to you and
claim they are so you'll fork over your paycheck, but ask them these
questions:

1) How can you claim to make people anonymous when every security
professional on the planet says a subscription service can never be
anonymous?

2) You tell people to "sign up anonymously". If you are an anonymous
service, why would users have to be anonymous before they do business with
you?

3) If you have to be anonymous to do business with you, what in the HELL
are you being paid for?

You can bet your last nickel some "anonymity service" puppet will chime in
at this point and call me names.

You can also bet your last nickel not a single ONE of them has the balls
to actually answer ANY of the above questions, and more.

If you want to be anonymous, use Tor or anonymous remailers. If you want
to hide your IP address from net kooks, subscribe to Cotse. If you want to
be lied to and pay way too much for the honor, subscribe to findsnot, or
its parent ripoff, privacy.LIE.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

Interesting, I didn't know Privacy.lie & Findsnot were one in the same.
If so, then I would certainly stay away from both.

My first thought when reading your post is, another monkey that thinks
everything on the web should be for free. Nevermind the costs to the
site operators involved ie.. Development, bandwidth, servers, hosting
and just the time involved to maintain it all. Nevermind all that just
give it away for FREE!  yeah, right.

You also state "Subscribe to Cotse". I can't knock Cotse, I like them
but, what makes it OK to signup "subscribe" to one privacy service but
not another?  If a person signs up for a privacy service using E-Gold or
a disposable pre-paid Visa card, then always connects using free
wireless hotspots, then they can in fact be anonymous.

It seems to me the problem here is, not everyone unlike yourself
naturally is a "know-it-all". You see, "Know-it-alls" know it all, so
they don't need to rely on a privacy service. Luckily however, for the
privacy services the "don't-know-it-alls" far outnumber the
"know-it-alls" and don't mind spending a few dollars to get a jump start
in the right direction. Gee, did I just cost someone their last nickel? 


Borked Pseudo Mailed wrote:

> SBN wrote:
>
> 
>
>
> <snip>
>
> You screwed up already. Findnot is NOT anonymous. They lie to you and
> claim they are so you'll fork over your paycheck, but ask them these
> questions:
>
> 1) How can you claim to make people anonymous when every security
> professional on the planet says a subscription service can never be
> anonymous?
>
> 2) You tell people to "sign up anonymously". If you are an anonymous
> service, why would users have to be anonymous before they do business with
> you?
>
> 3) If you have to be anonymous to do business with you, what in the HELL
> are you being paid for?
>
> You can bet your last nickel some "anonymity service" puppet will chime in
> at this point and call me names.
>
> You can also bet your last nickel not a single ONE of them has the balls
> to actually answer ANY of the above questions, and more.
>
> If you want to be anonymous, use Tor or anonymous remailers. If you want
> to hide your IP address from net kooks, subscribe to Cotse. If you want to
> be lied to and pay way too much for the honor, subscribe to findsnot, or
> its parent ripoff, privacy.LIE.
>

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

Anyone who would use "Gmail" has zero credibility in a security/privacy
newsgroup.

On Sun, 21 May 2006, Josh Bettenheimer <JBSkater@gmail.com> wrote:[vbcol=seagreen]
>Interesting, I didn't know Privacy.lie & Findsnot were one in the same.
>If so, then I would certainly stay away from both.
>
>My first thought when reading your post is, another monkey that thinks
>everything on the web should be for free. Nevermind the costs to the
>site operators involved ie.. Development, bandwidth, servers, hosting
>and just the time involved to maintain it all. Nevermind all that just
>give it away for FREE!  yeah, right.
>
>You also state "Subscribe to Cotse". I can't knock Cotse, I like them
>but, what makes it OK to signup "subscribe" to one privacy service but
>not another?  If a person signs up for a privacy service using E-Gold or
>a disposable pre-paid Visa card, then always connects using free
>wireless hotspots, then they can in fact be anonymous.
>
>It seems to me the problem here is, not everyone unlike yourself
>naturally is a "know-it-all". You see, "Know-it-alls" know it all, so
>they don't need to rely on a privacy service. Luckily however, for the
>privacy services the "don't-know-it-alls" far outnumber the
>"know-it-alls" and don't mind spending a few dollars to get a jump start
>in the right direction. Gee, did I just cost someone their last nickel? 
>
>
>Borked Pseudo Mailed wrote:
> 

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

I wouldn't know. I don't use email.


Borked Pseudo Mailed wrote:

> Anyone who would use "Gmail" has zero credibility in a security/privacy
> newsgroup.
>
> On Sun, 21 May 2006, Josh Bettenheimer <JBSkater@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
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[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

Josh Bettenheimer wrote:

> Interesting, I didn't know Privacy.lie & Findsnot were one in the same. If
> so, then I would certainly stay away from both.

Findsnot is a "sister" service, according to the admin of privacy.LIE

> My first thought when reading your post is, another monkey that thinks
> everything on the web should be for free. Nevermind the costs to the site

Where you got that idea is beyond reason. I even suggested a pay-for
service to satisfy a potential need.

But since you brought it up, the very best anonymity you can get happens
to be free, and being free is certainly one way to avoid demolishing your
anonymity by leaving a paper trail.

> operators involved ie.. Development, bandwidth, servers, hosting and
> just the time involved to maintain it all. Nevermind all that just give
> it away for FREE!  yeah, right.
>
> You also state "Subscribe to Cotse". I can't knock Cotse, I like them
> but, what makes it OK to signup "subscribe" to one privacy service but
> not another?

Honesty. Integrity. Little things like that. The ONLY thing you're really
paying these people for is their word they'll deliver what they claim they
will. Why anyone would trust someone who lies about their capabilities to
run the rest of their affairs completely above board is also beyond reason.

> If a person signs up for a privacy service using E-Gold or

E-Gold requires a registration. They will know your IP address. So will
the privacy service.

> a disposable pre-paid Visa card, then always connects using free
> wireless hotspots, then they can in fact be anonymous.

WiFi hotspots are NOT anonymous. Sorry. You've been lied to. There's a
traceable route back to a physical location, and that location knows a
considerable amount of of information about you. Like your MAC address. A
serial number that's unique to your machine. And even without this
knowledge the fact that you are uniquely identifiable and traceable means
that by DEFINITION you are not anonymous. Using a WiFi hotspot also means
you've become part of a local network, and are subject to the privacy and
security problems that come with that. Not to mention the fact the WiFi
hotspots are some of the most monitored connections in the world. You
can't even guarantee a given hotspot isn't in fact a TLA honeypot. In
truly anonymous situations it wouldn't matter.

What you've accomplished by using hotspots, prepaid VISA cards, E-Gold and
some privacy service is setting up a very elaborate, expensive, and
cumbersome privacy scheme. With some inherent flaws in even that privacy.
You'd be better served by subscribing to a legitimate privacy service
directly. At least a legitimate privacy service is a somewhat known
variable. A WiFi hotspot certainly is not. 

OTOH, you can use Tor and anonymous remailers and achieve REAL anonymity,
the best you're likely to ever get over a public network that's designed
to be as non-anonymous as it it, from the privacy of your own home.

> It seems to me the problem here is, not everyone unlike yourself
> naturally is a "know-it-all". You see, "Know-it-alls" know it all, so
> they don't need to rely on a privacy service. Luckily however, for the
> privacy services the "don't-know-it-alls" far outnumber the
> "know-it-alls" and don't mind spending a few dollars to get a jump start
> in the right direction. Gee, did I just cost someone their last nickel?

It's not about knowing it all, it's about actually achieving your goals.
If you want to be anonymous there is NO privacy service and NO hotspot
that can give you that. If you just need some privacy, you have many more
options.

It really is just that simple.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

I won't go into your long rant except to say that Privacy.li and
FindNot are NOT the same people.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

And you don't see the irony? I don't "use" Gmail except to post on
Usenet in a way that hides everything I do, and all from a simple web
interface. You go through your remailers, I go through a proxy chain to
Google Groups, using ALL fake information. I know it's not politically
correct to James Bond wannabes like you, but I do it just to piss snobs
like you off! Botto line: I don't know where YOU are and you don't know
where I am. Neither, by the way, does Google.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

All you've done is show YOUR ignorance. A public wifi hotspot can be
VERY anonymous. Not to mention, open wifi connections (that number in
the tens of thousands in my city). The MAC address is NOT a "serial
number" to your computer. Nobody can track you down through your MAC
address. After the fact, once someone has your computer, they can make
the connection, but at that point.......oh......and are you not aware
it is very simple to SPOOF your MAC address? Doing that, the broadcast
MAC ** would NOT ** match up with your computer. You act like you know
it all, and dole out incorrect information. Several things you said
about wifi were ridiculous but I'll stop here. Oh.....FindNot and
Privacy.li are NOT linked in any way. The admin of privacy.li never
said that. Show us.

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]