When you open any file from within the Windows operating system, Windows remembers this file name and location. Other people who have access to your computer can also see the files you have recently opened. Anonymizer Digital Shredder Lite will remove these file names from the Start menu. It will not delete the files, but will only remove the references to those files.

While you surf, your browser stores copies of the Web pages, including images, on your disk, so if you go back they can be retrieved quickly. This allows anyone with access to your PC, or hackers, to see what pages you have visited and what images you have viewed. These files can also consume hundreds of megabytes of space on your hard drive. Removing them improves both your security and your computer performance.

Cookies are small files placed on your computer by the Web sites you visit. They are often set to last for years or decades. Companies use them to personally identify you and track your activities on line. Some cookies only track you while you are on the web site, while others can track you across thousands of sites.

Typed URL
When you type a web address into the address bar at the top of Internet Explorer, it remembers what you typed. When you type in another address it will try to guess what you intend to type, based on previous URLs you have entered. This log of the sites you have visited is available to hackers and anyone with access to your PC.

Auto-Complete
When you fill out a form on a web page, IE can be set to remember the personal information you enter. Similar to the typed URL feature, IE will try to automatically fill in a web form with previously typed information. Since the auto-complete feature includes passwords that you may want to keep for convenience, this feature is not selected by default for shredding. If you wish to shred this information, you will need to check this option in the Browser Shred Options section.

Forms
When you fill out a form on a Web page, Mozilla Firefox can be set to remember the personal information you enter. This web form information is available to anyone with access to your PC.

Saved Passwords
Mozilla Firefox has a separate feature to automatically store passwords that you enter on web sites. This information is at risk if someone gets access to your PC, but you may find it convenient to keep passwords stored this way, so this feature is not selected by default for shredding.