MS' new browser 'porn mode' shields smutty sites

NO VIEW FINDER: The feature on IE 8 allows users to conceal the sites they have viewed.

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London: The latest version of Microsoft Corp.'s Internet browser includes a software that lets you surf the Web without a trace of what you checked out.

The InPrivate feature on Internet Explorer 8, dubbed “porn mode”, allows users to conceal the sites they have viewed at the click of a button.

After the setting is chosen, other people who are using the same computer would not be able to see which sites have been accessed. Other browsers have similar functions, but this one is far more prominent.

Although, casual users cannot see the previous user’s search history, authorities such as the police will be able to access it if necessary.

In allowing surfers to access websites but conceal their browsing behaviour, Microsoft prevents Internet sites from collecting information about their users — data that is then used to sell targeted advertising.

“If the hype around privacy gains more credibility, more people will hit the private button. There is a potential threat here to click-through advertising,” Times Online quoted David Mitchell, of the information technology agency Ovum, as saying.