Browzar exposes web users

Browzar, an internet browsing tool that is supposed to protect users’ privacy, has been widely criticised by web experts and bloggers for directing surfers to online advertising, and for failing to completely erase users' web histories.

The tool was launched to great fanfare a fortnight ago, and was supposed to provide users with a "refreshing level of personal browsing privacy" by not saving copies of visited pages in a cache, downloading cookies or retaining details entered into online forms.

This would enable business users to access the internet from shared PCs at work or in internet cafes "without leaving a trail of where they've been, user names and passwords", said Browzar founder Ajaz Ahmed.

But experts complained that the tool steered visitors to use its own search capability, powered by Overture, which returns large numbers of paid-for-search results, in a way that makes it difficult for users to differentiate the paid-for results from others.

A search for IT Week for example, returned 13 paid-for search results, occupying the entire first page. Security expert Bruce Schneier, among others, complained in his blog that Browzar "seems to be both fake and full of adware".

Ahmed denied that the tool was adware, and said users were free to use any search engine they wish. However, he admitted that the use of Overture had caused difficulties.

"The biggest problem was the way the search engine laid out results, so we changed it [to Ask.com] and now people will be happier," Ahmed said. "We realised the problem and turned off Overture – the only reason it wasn't done quicker was because it was the weekend."

Several bloggers have also revealed that the tool does not actually remove users' complete surfing history, so shared PCs may expose users’ details.

Writing in his Computer Zen blog, Scott Hanselman reported that although Browzar deleted cookies when he visited a site, it failed to delete the page itself, only closing it, which meant it could later be found in the IE cache.

Ahmed said his firm will try to remove any flaws that users find in Browzar, and an updated version will be available soon.

"We've aimed this at the average internet user, not the more technically sophisticated users who seem to require a different level of privacy," he added. "There have been hundreds of thousands of downloads [of Browzar] all over the world and the response has been fantastic."