Can ViewShield protect me from the spyware?
Does ViewShield support web browsers other than Internet Explorer?
Can ViewShield be useful for other Internet applications, for instance Microsoft Outlook?
Can I use another proxy while ViewShield is active?
What if I don't like what ViewShield did for a certain site?
Where can I find more about how ViewShield works?

Is default Blue mode good enough to protect my privacy from advertisers?
Why not use IE privacy interface?

Is default Blue mode good enough to block popups?
Why did my popup disappear from the screen?
Why do some popups briefly flash across the screen?
Why not use browser's pop up blocker, or another one I already have?

Is default Blue mode good enough to block advertisements?
Why doesn't the "deferred review" option work for this ad?
Why are some ads left unchanged after my cursor is moved out?

Why weren't my changes of the browser settings remembered?
Why not make large "trusted" and "restricted" lists, instead of changing security during the click?

It helps, but you should use other means, too.

Use Red or Black mode for untrusted sites, and they won't be able to install any spyware or other malicious applications. In these modes, browser security settings disable scripts and block ActiveX downloads, no popups are allowed, and most of the unrecognized content is skipped.

However, ViewShield will not search for already installed spyware, or close existing security holes. Green and Blue modes may not prevent security breaches.

ViewShield's purpose is to let you control what any site would display on your screen and what it will know about you. Use other means to make your computer safe from intrusions: latest security patches, firewall, antivirus software, and spyware removers.

Yes, with limitations.

You can use ViewShield with any browser (Opera, Netscape, Mozilla, etc.) to control privacy and skip advertisements.  

Manually set any non-IE browser to use ViewShield as HTTP proxy: localhost:888. 

To skip ads and surf anonymously, use Red or Black mode ("High" or "Extreme" privacy and content levels).  Don't use Blue mode to block ads: all of the content is treated as coming from the main site and will be allowed. 

To change the current Shield Mode or any settings, open the control panel (click on the icon in the system tray or on the desktop).   

If you use both IE and other browsers, you can freeze non-IE settings with special override. For instance, always skip ads and be anonymous when using other browsers, but follow current Shield Mode when using IE. 

To do this:

• open "Overrides" section
• select "[Other Web Apps]" from the "Site Tag" list
• set positions of the "Privacy" and "Content" sliders (for instance, "High" or "Extreme"). 

Features that currently work only with IE :

• popup blocker and security manager;
• browser interface extensions: Shield Menu, selective display menu, deferred load, and review of the skipped content;
• site-specific overrides and custom lists.

Yes.

Many Internet applications (Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Explorer etc.) use an Internet Explorer engine.  ViewShield is connected to Internet Explorer and automatically controls the privacy, content and security of these applications.

To modify protection levels, open the control panel (click on the icon in the system tray or on the desktop) and change current Shield Mode or any setting.  

To block senders from tracking if their email to you was opened, use Red or Black mode ("High" or "Extreme" privacy and content levels).  Set content level to "Extreme" to skip all scripts and rich media. "Medium" or even "High" level may not skip anything: all content is treated as coming from the main site. 

To keep email settings separate from IE, use a special override. For instance, use "High" privacy and "Extreme" content levels for Outlook, but follow current Shield Mode when using IE.

To do this:

• open "Overrides" section"
• select "[Other Web Apps]" from the "Site Tag" list
• select positions of "Privacy" and "Content" sliders (for instance, "High" or "Extreme"). 

Features that work with IE, but not with other applications that use its engine:

• popup blocker;
• browser interface extensions: Shield Menu, selective display menu, deferred load, and review of the skipped content;
• site-specific overrides and custom lists.

Yes.

When you activate ViewShield, it automatically puts the existing user proxy in its chain. To confirm it, open "Tune Up" section and look at the "User proxy" fields.

For instance, if you used a corporate proxy to connect to the Internet, or have another proxy-based security application, it will continue to work.

If you need to change a user proxy while ViewShield is running: suspend ViewShield; change HTTP proxy using browser interface, and then resume ViewShield again.

Note that ViewShield controls only the HTTP proxy: all other proxy types you may set directly from the browser interface.

Some ads or popups didn't appear when you needed them? Or did some sites show unwanted content when you think they shouldn't have?

First, try to fix it yourself by adjusting the ViewShield settings.

Default settings are good for the majority of Internet sites, but not for all of them.  In these cases, use ViewShield interface to find an optimal combination of settings that make the site do what you want it to. 

If too much content is visible: switch to the mode with a higher protection level. For instance, if some unwanted ads or popups are visible in the Blue mode, switch to the Red or Black mode the next time you load the same site, or set an override with all levels at "High" or "Extreme". Another way would be to right-click on unwanted content and select "Never show again" from the menu.

If too little content is visible: switch to the mode with lower protection. For instance, if some rich media ads don't play correctly during deferred review in the Blue mode, switch to the Green mode, or set an override with all levels at "Low". 

An easy way to change the Shield Mode is to press and hold the browser "Refresh" button, and then select a new mode from the Shield Menu that appears ariund the cursor.

Change other settings (individual filter levels or details) from the control panel. For instance, skip all rich media from any source, or allow all scripts.  To see effect of your changes, press "Apply" or "OK" and refresh the site. 

As a last resort, you can always temporarily suspend ViewShield for any site: just right-click shiled icon is the system tray and select "Suspend". Don't forget to resume ViewShield when your are done with that site.

If you could't find settings that solve your problem and had to use "Suspend",  let us know, and we'll fix it in the next update. 

Much of ViewShield interface is self-explanatory: play with it to discover available options.  Many interface elements have tool tips, displayed during a mouse-over from your cursor. To see the exact settings for each protection level, press "Details" and select a corresponding filter.

To get more information, open the control panel, click the "Help" button and use the Content Index to find your subject of interest.   

In most cases, yes. However, some ads may use scripts to access cookies and merge them with URL requests. Also, a site may share information about recognized visitors with its sponsors.

For better protection, use Red or Black mode to increase both privacy and security levels. Sites will not recognize you without logging on:  thus, they have nothing to share with sponsors. The complete version sets security to "High" in the Red mode,  disabling scripts.  If you use the privacy-only version, use browser security interface to disable scripts, or upgrade to complete ViewShield.

If you find a site that uses these tricks (for instance, new 3rd party cookies appear even when forbidden): set "High" privacy and "Restricted" security overrides and let us know about it.

IE privacy interface requires at least 5 clicks for any change. It can't hide your "referrer" data (last visited site) or IP address (often used to identify your geographic location, ISP or even specific computer).  If you use a single web proxy to hide these data, it may monitor all your browsing.

In most cases, yes. However, some sites may use scripts to create "pseudo-popups": embedded ads that only look like popups, but don't have separate windows. Other sites may show advertisements in the special windows intended for warnings and system messages. 

For better protection, use either the Red or Black mode to block all unrequested popups and increase security level. The complete version sets the security to "High" in the Red mode,  disabling scripts that could create pseudo-popups.  If you use the popups-only version, use browser security interface to disable scripts, or upgrade to the complete ViewShield.

If you find  site that uses these tricky popups, set "High" popup and "Restricted" security overrides and let us know about it.

Did it happen after you changed content in another browser window, or closed it?  

If yes, popup was automatically closed when site that opened it has disappeared. 

By default, only unrequested popups and ones without any browser interface can be automatically closed.  If you want some popup to remain open, click on the pin button in its bottom right corner. You can also disable this feature for any popup type by setting "Auto close" to "No".

Did you click on the link, but the requested popup didn't appear, or was closed immediately?

If yes, ViewShield didn't notice your input and blocked what it thought was unrequested popup.

To temporarily fix this problem, switch to the Green mode or set the Popup slider override to "Low" for that site. However, we'd appreciate if you let us know about it: we want to make sure that no requested popups are ever blocked.

If some or all unrequested popups are permitted, only their taskbar buttons become visible at first.

Short flash lets you know that new popup is created: otherwise, it's easy to miss new taskbar button.   

If popup should be blocked, it's usually closed without any flash. In rare cases when the popup is redirected from the main domain to the 3rd party, it could be closed after the flash.

Other blockers make it difficult to review what was skipped: they hide all skipped pop ups under one icon; require multiple clicks to select ones you want, often from a long list. After you check each pop up, it remains visible until you close it. 

 

In comparison, Popup ViewShield allows to load and dispay any skipped popup with a single click. When no longer relevant, each pop up will automatically disappear.

  

In most cases, yes. However, in Blue mode ViewShield blocks only ads it recognizes by matching them with blacklist patterns.  To keep the blacklist from becoming obsolete, always accept new updates.

To make sure that even unknown ads are skipped, switch to the Red or Black mode (or just set the Content slider to "High" or "Extreme"). After that, all 3rd party content that's not recognized (doesn't match a whitelist) will be blocked. If this also removes some useful content, go back and add it to the whitelist. There is an easy way to do it: right click on the image or frame and select "Always show this" from the menu.

Some sites may use scripts to create floating ads that cover main content. To make them disappear, disable scripts by increasing your browser security.The complete version automatically sets the security to "High" in the Red mode.  If you use the content-only version, use the browser security interface to disable scripts, or upgrade to complete ViewShield. 

To permanently disable floating ads on these sites, set "High" content and "Restricted" security overrides.

The "deferred review" option lets you load and display skipped content by stopping your cursor over its placeholder. It is enabled in the Blue mode and works well for the majority of ads.

However, deferred review may not work for some ads generated by scripts - no placeholders, or not all content is uncovered.  Sometimes it can be fixed by changing your Content settings: for instance, allow 3rd party scripts if you want all ads to have placeholders. 

A better solution if the "deferred review" option doesn't work and you'd like to see skipped content is to press your browser's "Refresh" button and select Green mode from the Shield Menu to make all content visible.

If your cursor moves out after a "deferred review", ViewShield asks the ad server to reload last item under cursor because it wasn't good enough to click. 

Currently, an update is displayed only if the ad server has it; otherwise, content will remain the same.

When ViewShield is active, it controls IE settings for many security details and HTTP proxy. All managed settings are locked to prevent tampering. For instance, if some application tries to lower the security level and install spyware, your previous settings will be restored at once. 

To change any locked security setting, click the on the ViewShield icon and open the control panel; don't use the browser interface. 

To change a user proxy, or any setting you want to use without ViewShield: suspend or exit ViewShield, and only then use the browser interface.  After that, resume or start ViewShield again -  it will then remember your changes.

All settings not managed by ViewShield (not listed in Security details, or set to "No change") can be changed from the browser interface at any time.  

You often trust or suspect a site before it's first loaded: no list is large enough for that.

You may trust an unknown site if it's already checked by others: for instance, link from a respectable news site that deals only with trusted sources; link from a shopping site that has 5-star rating assigned by other customers.

You may suspect an unknown site if it doesn't have good recommendations: search results at the end of the list (not many people linked to them); links from the site you didn't trust in the first place. 

After you've seen the site, it makes sense to add it to the "trusted" or "restricted" list only if you'd like to return to it again, especially if you plan to do it often. Security ViewShield makes it easy: just press the button in the bottom left corner and click on the security slider to set an override.