3 PC security questions

[aimouse]

1. I have a bad habbit of using my work wi-fi connection for surfing this and other adult websites. I use a PDA and connect directly to an ADSL wireless router. I'm not concerned about anyone checking my history files as the PDA is my own, but is there any other way I could get caught?

2. At home, other than using a password protected login (WinXP), clearing history, cookies and temp internet files, is there anything to keep younger, curious (and technically literate) eyes from finding things they possibly shouldn't.

3. What's the best (cheap, but not neccesarily free) internet / email security packge for porn surfers? I'm considering buying Norton.

 

[Hoppipolla]

I'm unsure on questions 1 & 3. But I can give you some advice on #2.

What I use when I want to surf for "suggestable content" is the Safari browser by Apple.

http://www.apple.com/safari/

Free for windows currently!

The advantage with Safari is Private Browsing. Open up a window, go to edit, and then Private Browsing. When that is turned on NOTHING IS SAVED. No history, no temp files, nada, zero. I've found that this is the easiest way to keep your online history private. That being said, I'm typing this in mozilla firefox. >_<
Thats what you get for being sleepy and opening the wrong browser. MORE COFFEE!

 

[Daolas]

Another option may be to use Portable Firefox from a Usb Drive. Then nothing is saved to the computer at all. As long as the Thumb Drive is secure, your surf history is secure.

You might even add PortableTor and Torbutton to the Thumb Drive as well. It would further secure your surfing habbits....I'd get the Networking Gurus on the boards here to verify but I think that someone wouldn't be able to see where you were surfing if you were connecting through a server.

 

[Weird Harold]

1. I have a bad habbit of using my work wi-fi connection for surfing this and other adult websites. I use a PDA and connect directly to an ADSL wireless router. I'm not concerned about anyone checking my history files as the PDA is my own, but is there any other way I could get caught?

Yes.

The ways you could get caught are so varied and installation specific that there is no way to detail how you could be caught, but every network has the capabiity to track what travels over it and which user received it.

2. At home, other than using a password protected login (WinXP), clearing history, cookies and temp internet files, is there anything to keep younger, curious (and technically literate) eyes from finding things they possibly shouldn't.

Anything you wish to permanenty save should be encrypted and/or preferably on removable media. Compressing a folder and adding a password (or compressing with WnZip with a password, which is the same thing as windows compressed folder,) is not the technically most secure encryption but it's one that's readily available and it will deter casual/accidental snooping

Anything you wish to delete, should be deleted with a secure delete and/or the disk should be wiped after you're finished deleting things with a secure disk-wiper -- one of the few things Norton is still good for is Norton Utilities which contians both diskwipe and filewipe, which as of the time I retired in 1989 met the US governments requirements for secure erases on comupter handling Confidential or Secret classified material.

3. What's the best (cheap, but not neccesarily free) internet / email security packge for porn surfers? I'm considering buying Norton.

Unless you need computer diagnostics, avoid Norton like the plague. Even if you DO need computer diagnostics, you probably do NOT need Norton's TSR computer monitoring utilities; the information they provide is generally not worth the performance cost of running Norton's memory and CPU hogging monitors.


Check out AVG from Grisoft.com. AVG Free is an excellent anti-virus program with a real time and e-mail scanning that doesn't stop everything else on the computer when it runs. Grisoft has several levels of deluxe/premium software some of which combine ad/malware blocking with the basic real-time scanning of AVG Free.

TrendMircro also has Anti-virus programs with efficient real-time scanning and combined virus, malware, spyware blocking. They don't offer a free version and can get a bit spendy for the combined package, but they're VERY good.

FWIW, I run AVG Free and ZonaAlarm's free firewall. I have AdAware SE for spyware and malware scanning, but not the real-time scanning version, but I don't allow cookies or active-X to run unless I know exactly why they need to run and I have very few problems with spyware or malware -- I ran adaware last week and discovered thepattern files were 452 days out of date -- nothing turned up from a complete scan with the most current pattern file downloaded.

 

[fgarvb1]

Buy a flash drive.

http://www.u3.com/

then


Install this,

HeatSeek is a private and secure, all-in-one adult content browser, downloader, viewer, and file organizer.

http://software.u3.com/ProductCategoryList.aspx?CategoryId=6&Selection=6&lang=en-US

This will help some because the drive is password protected only you can access it.

I don't know about the WIFI

I am hard wired here.

 

[aimouse]

Weird Harold - I'm running the free versions of AVG & ZA, but ZA keeps forgetting what apps to allow to use resources, and the spam scanner has stopped running.
And the whole PC is slow as ****. So I thought I'd try to kill two birds with one stone with a single package.
I've been told AVG doesn't deal with boot sector viruses?

Daolas - i use firefox anyway, but I like the of a PDA version.

 

[Weird Harold]

...but ZA keeps forgetting what apps to allow to use resources, and the spam scanner has stopped running.

Forgetting which apps have access or letting you know that they've been modified?

ZoneAlarm often asks for permission for AVG's updater to access the 'Net after I've gone for the complete update option to update the scan engine as wellas the pattern files beause it detects that the program has been modified and wants to insure that *I* know that it was modified -- which I usually do because I do NOT allow programs to update without human intervention.

And the whole PC is slow as ****. So I thought I'd try to kill two birds with one stone with a single package.
I've been told AVG doesn't deal with boot sector viruses?

I'd bet that your virus and malware scans have nothing to do with your computer slowing down since they weren't slowing the system down when first intalled. I'd bet that disk fragmentation and/or virtual memory swap file usage is slowing your system down.

On tha front, a recent discussionwith another person with a "slowed computer" reminded me that defragging programs often report "drive less than ten percent Fragmented, defrag not recommended," without noting that the files that are most fragmented are those that Windows is constantly accessing and updating -- it doen't matter if 99% of a 100GB drive is unfragmented if the 1GB you're actually accessing is 100% fragmented.

 

[temp256]

None of you are doing anything to cover your tracks. Antivirus software has nothing to do with this at all. As long as you are using their internet connection, they can see all unencrypted traffic.

What you need is a proxy. Something to obscure the traffic coming into the company router. TOR is great for this. It encrypts all traffic through several chained proxy servers, creating a highly anonymous connection.

There is no such thing as windows security. It's completely insecure, and can be cracked by anyone in seconds by anyone who wants to with very little hassle. If you don't want anyone looking at history data and such, don't save it to the hard drive. Better yet, don't touch the hard drive at all. Get a Linux bootable live CD. Once you're done, simply reboot, and nothing will mark your presence.

None of this costs anything.

 

[In Anticipation]

None of you are doing anything to cover your tracks. Antivirus software has nothing to do with this at all. As long as you are using their internet connection, they can see all unencrypted traffic.

What you need is a proxy. Something to obscure the traffic coming into the company router. TOR is great for this. It encrypts all traffic through several chained proxy servers, creating a highly anonymous connection.

There is no such thing as windows security. It's completely insecure, and can be cracked by anyone in seconds by anyone who wants to with very little hassle. If you don't want anyone looking at history data and such, don't save it to the hard drive. Better yet, don't touch the hard drive at all. Get a Linux bootable live CD. Once you're done, simply reboot, and nothing will mark your presence.

None of this costs anything.

Will using a proxy hide the url requests from the corporate router?

Using a Linux live CD is a good answer to browse with no tracks. Of course you then have to remember all your URLs too. You can also boot from a USB flash drive (easier to carry) and also have an encrypted partition on it to store stuff on. There are some really pared down linux distros that not only take up little space but also boot quickly, some will just boot up straight into firefox.

 

[temp256]

Yes it will. They won't see anything but encrypted packets going to various proxy servers around the world.

Flash drives are great, but not every computer can boot from them. Also remember any encrypted data is as safe as your weakest password. Zip files use broken encryption methods, and should not be trusted at all.

 

[Bert Notorius]

We just had a kid fired over the holidays. IT was taking screen caps every 15 seconds.

 

[SubNebGuy]

Yes it will. They won't see anything but encrypted packets going to various proxy servers around the world.

thing is, what if IT sees your IP blasting packets all over the place?

the fact is, if no one's monitoring, you can do whatever you want. if someone wants to monitor you, you're gonna get screwed one way or the other.

work is for work. call me old fashioned.

 

[kindashy]

1. I have a bad habbit of using my work wi-fi connection for surfing this and other adult websites. I use a PDA and connect directly to an ADSL wireless router. I'm not concerned about anyone checking my history files as the PDA is my own, but is there any other way I could get caught?

Yes. Your IT technicians can get the information on where you went from the router. They can get other information too if they are interested...

2. At home, other than using a password protected login (WinXP), clearing history, cookies and temp internet files, is there anything to keep younger, curious (and technically literate) eyes from finding things they possibly shouldn't.

I assume you are the actual owner of such computer. You have to setup yourself as the computer's administrator. That will make you administrator, also known as Super User. Now you are Super User and all the other people who use this same computer are regular users. You should limit privileges of the regular users. This way they will not be able to see what you do on the computer, but you can look and see what they, the regular users, have been up to, if you so desire.

3. What's the best (cheap, but not neccesarily free) internet / email security packge for porn surfers? I'm considering buying Norton.

Someone already suggested Safari. Not a bad advice, but there is a problem. The last time I used Safari for Xp, the Private Browsing option had to be turned on every time you start the browser. Apple might have fixed it by now, but you will need to ask others or try it yourself.

I have setup an equivalent to Safari's Private Browsing in my browser of choice, the Firefox. I am pretty sure you can do the same in Internet Explorer, but I don't trust M$...

Another interesting item for Firefox is an Anonymizer plug-in. Perfect for our uses Unfortunately I run into some issues opening pictures through this plug-in, so it has been text only for me.

As far as e-mail. Online e-mail (yahoo mail, google mail, etc.) are all fine for home use and pornography. At work? I think you can use some internet e-mail if it offers encrypted communication between your browser and their server, but I am not sure who does that these days. I think your best bet would be an e-mail client. I have not done anything like that myself, but your pda should have outlook (I have Toshiba PDA with WM2003) or something similar. And then there are other e-mail clients that might work for you.

 

[In Anticipation]

We just had a kid fired over the holidays. IT was taking screen caps every 15 seconds.

Of course there is that, network admin can view your desktop at will . . .

 

[temp256]

thing is, what if IT sees your IP blasting packets all over the place?

the fact is, if no one's monitoring, you can do whatever you want. if someone wants to monitor you, you're gonna get screwed one way or the other.

It's a wireless connection. There is no way to trace it back to you without forcing you to log in. In fact, don't even bother with proxies if you're on your own wireless computer.

Gmail web access is encrypted, but if they have administrative control over your computer, they can see everything.

 

[kindashy]

Gmail web access is encrypted, but if they have administrative control over your computer, they can see everything.

The original poster was using their own personal PDA. It sounds like Gmail would be a good option then.

 

[Weird Harold]

The original poster was using their own personal PDA. It sounds like Gmail would be a good option then.

How would G-Mail help hide the tracks left by surfing Literotica and other sites via the workplace's wireless ADSL router?

 

[kindashy]

How would G-Mail help hide the tracks left by surfing Literotica and other sites via the workplace's wireless ADSL router?

It will not help. Should I delete my previous post?

 

[Weird Harold]

It will not help. Should I delete my previous post?

No point to deleting it really, (since I quoted it) and G-Mail does seem to be a good suggestion for people who don't want IT techs reading their e-mail (it won't really stop them, but it makes them work for it.)

 

[HDSpicy]

Good idea.

 

[aimouse]

I do have a legitimate ability to log in to the router, but limited netwirking experience.
Is there anything specific I shpuld look at re logs?
I have no reason to think anyone else would notice if I cleared logs - I just don't want to get bitten on the ass!

 

[Weird Harold]

Is there anything specific I shpuld look at re logs?

I have no reason to think anyone else would notice if I cleared logs - I just don't want to get bitten on the ass!

The odds of anyone actually needing the information in typical security logs is Nil, but when it IS needed, it's usually for something relatively important. Some businesses are required by law to maintain server logs for varying periods of time of more than a year.

However, if the logs ARE needed the only thing they're going to find is "New Log started by aimouse on 01-14-08 at 1000" and wonder why you deleted the old logs and if you have anything to do with what they were investigating.

I dont know of any network security logging sysem that doesn't leave some trace of who cleared the old logs.

The simplest solution is to just stop using the work connection for non-work browsing -- like that's ever going to happen; for you or anyone else.

 

[toyotomi]

Holy crap this is gonna be a long post...

1. I have a bad habbit of using my work wi-fi connection for surfing this and other adult websites. I use a PDA and connect directly to an ADSL wireless router. I'm not concerned about anyone checking my history files as the PDA is my own, but is there any other way I could get caught?

Yes you can get caught. Even if you used an encrypted proxy on your PDA if they saw an external device accessing a bunch of different proxy servers through the router they could start keeping an eye out for someone using something like a PDA and could catch you like that, or at the very least could become suspicious. In any case it's a very very bad idea to use a work PC for anything other than Work. This is something that I have a very hard time forcing myself to do, but when all is taken into consideration it's the only way to go. If you use a PC they have access to, then I would recommend that you don't use it for literally ANYTHING other than work. As previously pointed out they can access the screen to see what you see, they can monitor the connection, and here's the big thing, even if you oh say just log into your email address, they could potentially get your password if they are particularly unscrupulous. This also applies for anything like credit card purchases, or any kind of personal information that you don't want the IT guys to get a hold of. Play it safe and only use your own personal PC on your own personal network for anything personal (such as porn, email, purchases, etc.) In my opinion it isn't worth the risk, and besides, you could always save some material to your PDA at home and view it offline at work.

2. At home, other than using a password protected login (WinXP), clearing history, cookies and temp internet files, is there anything to keep younger, curious (and technically literate) eyes from finding things they possibly shouldn't.

You actually have a lot of options here. Now first off I should say that depending on how tech savvy the younger ones are, never consider anything completely hidden. That said, there are plenty of free file encryptors that are WAY better than anything MS offers as part of windows or as part of programs like WinZip. I can't really offer any links or program recommendations for those though, because I haven't looked into encryption programs for years and I don't recommend what I can't be certain is a good program. However look around and be sure to read reviews and browse some tech forums to check out the general response to the quality of the software before downloading anything and you should be able to find something that will meet your needs.

As far as your WinXP login goes, make sure your account is an administrator account (better yet the actual "administrator" account) and that anyone else is using an account with lower permissions and as previously suggested by kindashy, you can set their permissions according with what you'd like for them to be able to access and not access. Also make sure to use a complex password that you won't forget but also won't be easily guessed by the younger ones.

Also, if you are at all worried about them being able to find material on their own and not just things that you've downloaded, then there are also quite a variety of programs that will block adult (and other) sites from them. They are far from flawless though, and can be circumvented in most cases if they know enough. Once again I can't make a recommendation on this note, but I do know there are some that are considered reasonably reliable.

3. What's the best (cheap, but not neccesarily free) internet / email security packge for porn surfers? I'm considering buying Norton.

DON'T use Norton. Please believe me it's not a good idea. Their software isn't anywhere near as good as it used to be and they also conduct some unscrupulous business practices that (arguably) potentially actually create more security risks. And besides there are many better and FREE alternatives.

Now here's the long part of my post (yeah... before this was short and sweet):
I have a long history with making my computers secure as possible. And as temp256 said (despite the spitefulness) there is no such thing as a completely secure PC and least of all a completely secure Windows PC. The only way it will be secure is for it to remain unplugged.

That said, you can take measures to make it as secure as possible, and this is what I can really make some good suggestions on. I would also point out that I am of the belief that nobody should have to pay for computer security, and so all of my suggestions will be free or have free versions. (with one exception)

First off is Anti-Virus programs. I highly recommend AVG Free. It's always served me well over the years and I don't see much of a point in buying the full version as it doesn't add that much more to your security. I've never heard anything about AVG not being able to clear viruses hiding in the boot sector, and as I stated I really do trust the program. However if you don't/can't trust AVG, then my suggestion to you would be to (and it's the only one that's not free) would be to get NOD32. They have a free 30 day trial, and it's not terribly expensive. From what I've read and heard from people who know even better than me, NOD32 is really the best Antivirus program you can get right now. I don't know that you'd see a truly significant benefit from getting it as opposed to AVG Free, but if you really want the best and don't want it free, then I'd say this is your best bet.

Secondly is Anti-Malware (Anti-Spyware etc.). This is a long (really long) list, and I personally use every one of these programs. To start basic make certain you have all your Windows Updates including Service Pack 2. Then get yourself Windows Defender. This is a program you should have running all the time and make sure to have it run scheduled scans and automatically update.

Also get Spybot - Search & Destroy. Update it regularly, and use it to run scans for any malware (I'd recommend scanning once a week, but even I don't usually keep up to that frequency for tests but I keep it well updated). Make sure to use the Immunize feature as it will block your browsers and even your HOSTS file (blocking via the HOSTS file will stop bad connections at the first level on your machine. It's really the best way to blacklist sites/connections) from known harmful connections.

Ad-Aware Free is another must. It doesn't have any preventative measures, but it does conduct very thorough scans. Keep it updated and run scans regularly.

Spyware Blaster is a purely preventative measure. It serves a function similar to the Immunize feature of Spybot S&D, but it doesn't modify the HOSTS file and will compliment the Spybot S&D's Immunization nicely to provide added security. It isn't a program that runs in the background or anything, you just run it, update it, enable the protection and close it. You can then forget about it until you update it again. And make sure to keep it updated regularly.

AVG Anti-Spyware (formerly known as ewido), is an excellent malware scanner. Honestly it's one of the most thorough I've used. It comes with a 30 day trial of the pro version and then reverts to the free version when the trial runs out. There isn't TOO much point in getting the pro version, but if you really want to and don't mind the cost then go for it. At least get the free version and update regularly and run regular scans.

Now on to the subject of Firewalls. Until recently I too used ZoneAlarm. For the longest time I've had a problem with my internet connection where I'd have to reboot to connect anything to the internet after a while. Honestly it was never enough of an annoyance to do anything about but I finally got fed up and found out ZoneAlarm was the cause. I then found out about an even better firewall that is completely free (no pay version at all... 100% free) and surpasses ZoneAlarm in quality. I used to recommend ZA all the time, and now I finally recommend something above it. The program I'm speaking of is called Comodo Firewall Pro. It can be a bit of a pain to setup and get all of your good programs defined to be allowed, but after you do it runs well and will stay out of your hair while keeping you safe. The dialogs and alerts to programs seeking permissions are almost exactly the same as ZoneAlarm's. For programs you know you can trust use the slide-down menu and select "Treat as "trusted application". Otherwise it's the usual "allow" "deny" choices you're used to from ZA. Now Comodo has basically two features, Firewall, and Defense+. I suggest setting both of them to "Train with Safe Mode" This will give you the least hassle and still keep you just as protected. Also take the time to browse their forums for tips and advice as they probably have answers to most questions you may have. Since you are already having problems with ZoneAlarm I really recommend you give Comodo a try. If you use ZA or Comodo be sure to disable the Windows Firewall that comes with the OS.

Now, the next two programs aren't specifically security programs but can do their part to keep you more secure. The first is a file-shredder called Eraser. This program will overwrite a file you want permanently deleted with random 1's and 0's and render it irretrievable even by most forensic means. The US Department of Defense uses file shredders to destroy sensitive files on their hard disks and they typically use 7 passes of random 1's and 0's. This program however can (and I believe by default does) make 35 passes over the file exceeding the US DoD standards by 5 times. So yes, with this, you'll be able to erase your files better than the government does. Now this is useful for any file you may want to get rid of permanently but it's also good in a security sense too. If you get a program or file that a scanner or AV program can't delete, just give it a few passes with this and it goes bye-bye for good. Also useful if you end up with a file that you just think is a little fishy. Do be careful though when Erasing files, because you will NOT be able to get them back after you Erase them. I don't use this that often, but it is nice to have on hand. And in case you were wondering, when you delete a file on your computer, it doesn't actually go away. Just all references to that file are removed and it's treated as empty space leaving it open to be overwritten. Now if you are frequently adding new files, then chances are you will overwrite that space and the file will be mostly irretrievable. However if you use the right programs you can still retrieve files that have been deleted but not overwritten, and some files overwritten by regular means can be retrieved forensically. I also recommend using a program to overwrite your Hard Disks completely if you plan on giving them to someone or selling them so the person getting them can't retrieve information about you. (there's different programs I'd recommend for this purpose but it's not really relevant for your needs atm)

Last for this little section is a program called ATF Cleaner. This program will delete files from locations such as your Temp directories or other areas that will commonly clutter up your Hard Disks taking up unnecessary space. It's made for Win2k and WinXP only. It's a very light weight application and doesn't need to install onto your machine. Just save the .exe somewhere safe, and run it periodically to clear out that unneeded clutter. Select the "Select All" check box (look over the list first though) and hit the "Empty Selected" button to clean up. Also if you use Firefox, make sure to click the Firefox button at the top of that screen.

Finally, my last set of suggestions are for browsing the web. First off, if you use Internet Explorer for anything other than Windows Updates.... STOP. I can't really stress this enough. I could get into a debate on the subject for hours, but just take my word on this one and I promise you it's the right decision.

Now that I said what not to use, here's what you should use. Get Firefox, and use it for all your browsing other than Windows Updates.

I could recommend on ways to effectively cover your tracks and erase the proper files, but really, it's easier to just not leave any tracks in the first place. That's why I recommend the Firefox Extension Stealther. Using this little addon, all you have to do is hit a key combination that you can specify yourself (I set mine to Ctrl+Shift+Z since that doesn't interfere with any of my other programs or extensions) and then you will not leave any trace of your activities. It actually keeps any sites you visit or files you download or cached files from being written to any files on your computer in the first place. You can activate it in the Tools menu or you can even set it so it won't show up in the Tools menu and only work via the key combination. This is great if you start a session browsing normally and then switch to browsing sites you don't want people to know about. Just hit your key combination and surf as you please.

One must-have Extension for any installation of Firefox is Adblock. Using this extension you'll never have to worry about banner ad's or annoying graphics or flash animations again. You just right click (or in the event of a flash object use the tools menu to use the flash overlay and then left click the object) and select to block it. Using the asterisk modifier you can also block entire ad hosting sites. (for example: if you right click an ad and select to block it and the filter shows up as "www.ihatebannerads.com/asasdkfha/su4822134398/1.gif" then you can change the filter to "*ihatebannerads.com" (without quotes of course) and all ads will be blocked rather than that single ad with the generated url that will probably change the next time you load the page.) Using this extension I almost never see any banner ads that I don't want to see. Or heck I don't see any flash animations or pictures or graphics I don't want to see.

For Firefox extensions that's really the most basic setup considering your needs. I could give you some more links to extensions that would make your browsing even safer (if not a tiny bit more of a hassle to set up) but won't bother going into those details unless you really want me to.


Well, I think I've covered all of the bases for the most part. There are some more programs and tweaks I could recommend to help keep you even more secure and even help you overcome whatever is making your PC slow down, but this covers the immediate issues. As I said, all of the programs with the exception of NOD32 I use myself, and frequently. I've never had problems with them and would be happy to answer any questions related to any of my suggestions. Feel free to PM me with any questions or discussion on the subject.

Hope this wasn't WAY too much to read

PS: Yay, my first post and isn't it a doozy. Finally got drawn out of the shadows of lurking.

 

[In Anticipation]

Excellent first post. Some you list I use, some I hadn't heard of.

I'm not quite that paranoid, but I don't like to leave too many traces. My pet bugbear is applications that install browser toolbars.

I also have an issue with games that will only run for administrators. Therefore I need an admin account for my kids to run games, which is a bit of a compromise.

 

[mattjones1988]

Hi there, i will try to keep this a short as possible.

Question 1:

This question can only be answered correctly with some further information, but i will give you the idea from both sides:

If you have a static IP address, i.e. your network admin has given you an ip address usually something on the lines of 10.X.X.X your PDA can be completely monitored, i.e using an item called securus (securus will only run if you have the securus application installed on your PDA). It is a server that site on the network and it has a bank of key words phrases etc which carries a serverity ID, the network admin can then choose what serverity incidents he views, i.e. porn can be catagorised between 70-90 (the scale runs from 10-100 in increments of 10) so therefore if you viewed Lit, and viewed the stories and the word fuck was found on the page, the securus app takes a screen shot sends it back to the securus server and then the network admin can view it as and when necessary.

If for instance a securus application wasnt installed they can still monitor your internet activity by using what we call saw-mill. The way saw mill works is, if your PDA has a static address, the chances are that the admin has noted that IP links to you Saw mill can then sort through proxy logs for that particular IP address and ultimately view website you have been visiting.

Linked to the above, if your company has a proxy, which they are stupid if they havent, also filters certain websites based on the network and company preferences, i.e. they could block all web based email hosts if they wanted to.

The second scenario is if you have a DHCP assigned address, this basically means that everytime that you connect to the wifi at your work, the DHCP server assigns you a new IP address, the only thing they could monitor, depending on the complexity of the network is what devices are obtaining which IP address.

Finally on question 1, it doesnt matter if it is your own PDA, it is still the compan internet access you are using, if you read your companys Acceptable use policy, it will clearly state that the connection to there network is leased to you by the company forr work related use.

question 2

As previously suggested, use an administrator account, when you get to the windows logon screen, press ctrl+alt+delete, this will bring up a new little box, with administrator in, this has full system control unlike a user administrator account. The chances are that there will be no password on it (this is the default, fantastic windows setup security, not even forcing to enter an admin password, well done M$) so press enter and this should let you, so in theory it is a hidden admin account, its amazing how few people know about the ctrl+alt+del admin accoutn at the logon screen.

Once logged on ensure that you go to control panel and change the password for the administrator account!!

for the second part of the question stopping anyone else viewing anything of your, just set permissions on your folders. right click a folder a select security, in the white box at the topl list all users that can view the file and down the bottom what they can actually do to the file, so for instance, if there is a folder where you keep your pictures etc, right click the folder and click security and delete the other usernames from the list, this will give them no permission to view the file at all. Then click advanced and click copy and then in the new window click delete, this will stop inheritable permissions being enforced.

As for other users, create them limited accounts and set up there permissions through user accounts in control panel. as for them viewing inappropriate websites, there are loads of programs on the market just search www.download.com for parental filter, the best ones are word database applications, i.e. it will block a website for the specified users based on wheteher a word appears on the website, if it does, it is blocked.

Question 3, i pretty much think that the question has been resolved, although, an anti virus program isnt going to delete your internet tracks.

If you need any more help i am more than happy to help.

Steve