14 DAY TRIAL // Privacy Killer does exactly what its name suggests: eliminates traces that betray your web browsing habits and computer usage routines. It takes care of the traces left behind in temporary folders, Windows Clipboard, logs, Recycle Bin, web browser cache and cookies, or various toolbar history lists. The application can also act as a registry cleaner and startup manager.
Privacy Killer is specially created to eliminate computer usage tracks, but it can also help improve computer performance by getting rid of items you no longer need and which can have a negative impact on system performance.
The application comes at a regular price of $15.99, but you can get it 50% off if you make a purchase by the end of August. The current price of the application is a great improvement for this edition, as previous versions came with a price tag that had $39.99 written on.
The assortment of features available in the program also includes a file shredder that takes care of deleted files to remain deleted, a task manager to help you with handling running processes, an uninstaller and a web browser cookie manager. The list does not stop at these, as Privacy Killer providess a fast way to initiate trace sweeping sessions, hide your browsers, instant messaging apps and even Privacy Killer itself (boss keys).
Installation went smooth in our case, with no unscheduled stops. At the end of the process you will have to select a theme you want to be applied to the program. You can modify it after installation from the Preferences window of the application.
The interface is no complicated thing, and it is somehow informational, as some of the menus rolling down in the left hand side present details on the number of cleaning options they have enabled. For full statistics on the amount of files and registry entries Privacy Killer deleted, either during the current session or since you started using the program, the first menu on the list is the place to go (HeadQuarter). It also offers a detailed view for each section it cleans up.
Under Windows menu there are no less than 14 sections listed and ready to be added in the cleaning process. Privacy Killer is perfectly capable of eliminating residual CHK files, Windows Clipboard, OS’s temporary folder, log files, memory dumps, but also the history data of Run menu, WordPad, MS Paint, or search menu.
If you want to start a cleaning session for a single menu alone, the application provides this possibility through the right-side vertical button in each menu. Hitting that will initiate trace elimination only for the active menu.
Privacy Killer supports all major browsers currently on the market, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome and Opera, but it also saved a nostalgic spot for Netscape users. Although all browsers today come with self-cleaning options, repeating the operation on a system equipped with several browsers could turn into a time consuming task. Using Privacy Killer meks the job easier as it sweeps all of them in one click of a mouse.
Each of the supported browsers gets a menu of their own, except for Firefox and Netscape which share the same page. The common ground for all of them is represented by the option to clear cache data, cookies and browsing history. Additional options are session and download history cleaning (available for Opera, Firefox and Google Chrome) and autocomplete username and password (Internet Explorer, Google Chrome and Firefox).
In order to run a proper sweep, the targeted browsers need to be closed and if you left one running Privacy Killer will offer to close it for you. All marked sections are properly scrubbed and at the end of the session you get to see the number of items purged and their weight.
An important aspect is the fact that for Firefox and Internet Explorer you have the possibility to choose the cookies you want to preserve. The option is available in the web browsers’ menus but it can also be found in the Tools section.
The history of some toolbars is also targeted by the application. It can erase the search history in some of the most popular toolbars out there, like those provided by Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft, but less used ones are also included in the list: Groowe, Ask, DogPile or AltaVista.
The Tools Privacy Killer’s tool chest is packed with instruments designed to wipe traces of you using the computer. You have the cookie manager to help you select the cookies you want to keep on the system, the file shredder to wipe data beyond recovery, the uninstaller to remove applications from the computer, the registry manager to take care of any uninstall left-overs, process managers and a plugin manager to extend the application’s functionality.
The cookie manager works only with Firefox and Internet Explorer and simply lists all the cookies currently available in these two web browsers, allowing you to select the ones you want to keep. These will be skipped during the privacy cleaning process.
Privacy Killer’s file shredding capabilities allow you to choose secure algorithms like Peter Gutmann’s 35 passes which takes a while to complete. Faster results are obtainable using the US DoD 5220.22M 3 pass standard or the simple 1 pass overwrite which take less to complete. To eliminate any chance of someone getting their hands on an important document you shredded, there is the option to enable file name scrambling.
The startup manager present in the application is a simple but complete tool that shows you the items that load with Windows. It permits you to add or delete items in the list as well as enable or disable them.
On the other hand, the task manager bundled in the toolbox has one particular feature that makes it stand out from the crowd. Apart from the fact that it provides details like RAM usage and number of threads of a running process, it also records the time of launch. This can be particularly important when you’re on a malware hunt.
Testing the uninstaller we found that there is nothing special about it, save for the fact that it offers a more informative view over the applications installed on the system. It mainly depends on the programs themselves to offer these details, but Privacy Killer can display it if there is an URL available or a contact address or help link.
But the list of advantages stops at these, because the uninstall process itself is not improved in any way and whether you use the utility in Windows or the one in Privacy Killer it is all the same.
Another trick in the hat of Privacy Killer is the registry cleaner. It can be used in tandem with the uninstaller so that any left-overs are swept away. Scan engine takes a while to complete the job and it isn’t too thorough either (double it with a freeware like CCleaner for better cleaning). However, during our tests detected entries were always invalids.
Among the improvements made to the application since our last review Privacy Killer added to its utility belt the possibility to erase privacy data automatically, at a user-defined time and day. Additional configuration settings include set up the shortcuts for keyboard control of the main activities of the application (Boss keys) or restricting the access to the Preferences panel with a password.
Privacy Killer worked great for the most part of our testing, but we bumped into some nags on the way, like unexpected crashes or file shredding sessions that took too long to finish. However, price of this version has dropped considerably and overall feel of the program is also much improved.
Cleaning can be done individually, per menu, as well as integral, for all the browsers and Windows sections available. Privacy Killer encompasses tools designed to keep your computer clean of invalid registry entries as well as protected from prying eyes (Privacy Locker); moreover, the tool chest lets you check on the startup items and running processes. Automated privacy erasing sessions can be programed to happen at a specific time and on a certain day of the week. Shredding options include Peter Gutmann algorithm as well as lighter secure deletion methods. The registry cleaner is not too thorough on the job, spent quite some time on the job and in our case it missed plenty of entries. The registry backup created with Privacy Killer was rejected by the registry upon import. But it also comes with its weak spots. The amount of crashes was quite high and happened pretty much out of nowhere. The registry cleaner also needs to be optimized in terms of speed and thoroughness. This article is also available in Spanish: Elimina los rastros de uso de tu ordenador
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