Quick Exit
The “QUICK EXIT” button on the top right of the CAWES website will quickly hide the page but you will still need to delete your history to fully cover your tracks.
How can an abuser discover your internet activities?
Please take a few minutes to read the advice below, if you follow the steps we’ve outlined you can significantly increase your safety when visiting this website.
As a rule, internet browsers will save certain information as you browse. This includes images from websites visited, information entered into search engines and a “history” trail that can reveal the sites you have visited. Following the instructions below can minimize the chances of someone finding out that you have visited CAWES online.
If you know what browser you are using, then you can skip to the relevant instructions below. If you do not know the type of browser you are using, click on “Help” on the toolbar at the top of the browser screen. A drop down menu will appear, the last entry will say “About Internet Explorer”, “About Mozilla Firefox”, or something similar. The entry refers to which browser type you are using – you should then refer to the relevant advice below.
Private Browsing
All leading web browsers have a “private browsing” mode that, once enabled, stores nothing about your activity on your computer in that browsing window. This won’t stop online services from seeing what you get up to, but it won’t leave any traces of your activity on your computer (no history, web cache or anything else) and so it’s always a useful first step to take.
Internet Explorer:
“Go to Safety" – “Tools” – “In Private Browsing”.
Firefox:
Click the “Menu” button with three horizontal lines – “New Private Window”.
Chrome
Click the “Menu” button with three horizontal lines and select “New Incognito Window”.
Microsoft Edge
Click the “Menu” button on the right-hand side (three dots) and select “New InPrivate Window”.
Safari
Click File from the menu bar and choose "New Private Window."
Opera
Click File from the menu bar and choose "New Private Window."
It is also best to double check that nothing has been stored by following the steps below:
Internet Explorer
Click on the “Tools” menu and select “Internet Options”. On the “General” page, under “Temporary Internet Files”, click on “Delete Cookies” and then “OK”.
Click on “Delete Files”, put a tick in the box labelled “Delete all offline content” and click “OK”.
Under “History”, click on “Clear History” and then “OK”. Now look at the top of the window and click on the “Content” tab, select “Auto Complete” and finally, “Clear Forms”.
Firefox
Click on "Tools” and then “Options”, then click on “Privacy”. Click on the “Clear” button next to “Cache” and “Saved Form Information”.
Deleting Your Browser History
Internet browsers also keep a record of all the web pages you visit. This is known as a “history”. To delete history for Internet Explorer and Firefox hold down the “Ctrl” key on the keyboard, then press the “H” key (Ctrl, Alt and H for Opera). Find any entries that say “https://cawes.com/”, right click and choose “Delete”.
If an abuser sends you threatening or harassing email messages, they may be printed and saved as evidence of this abuse. Any email you have previously sent will be stored in “Sent” Items. If you started an email but didn’t finish it, it might be in your “Drafts” folder. If you reply to any email, the original message will probably be in the body of the message – print and delete the email if you don’t want anyone to see your original message.
When you delete an item in any email program (Outlook Express, Outlook, etc.) it does not really delete the item – it moves the item to a folder called “Deleted Items”. You have to delete the items in this folder separately. Right click on items within the “Deleted Items” folder to delete individual items permanently.
Toolbars
Toolbars such as Google, AOL and Yahoo keep a record of the search words you have typed into the toolbar search box. In order to erase all the search words you have typed in, you will need to check the individual instructions for each type of toolbar. For example, for the Google toolbar all you need to do is click on the “Google” icon, and choose “Clear Search History”.
General Security
If you do not use a password to log on to your computer, someone else will be able to access your email and track your internet usage. The safest way to find information on the internet, would be at a local library, a friend’s house, or at work.
All of the above information may not completely hide your tracks. Many browser types have features that display recently visited sites. The safest way to find information on the internet, would be at a local library, a friend’s house, or at work.