You can think of SnoopFree Privacy Shield as a tireless security guard that watches your computer for programs that try to invade your privacy. If any program tries to access potentially sensitive information, SnoopFree Privacy Shield stops the offending program and asks you how you want to handle it. The way SnoopFree Privacy Shield works is not unlike how firewall software works. If you've worked with firewall software before, you should have no problems understanding this program. Of course, SnoopFree Privacy Shield is not a firewall for your Internet connection... it's a "firewall" for your keyboard, screen and open windows.
SnoopFree Privacy Shield protects you from several major privacy threats: keystroke loggers, unauthorized screen shots and un-owned window reads. These three privacy threats are more common than you may think. There are many commercially available "spy" programs that perform all three of these actions. Anyone that has access to your computer can secretly install such spy programs to track your every move. There are also many "Trojan horse" programs and viruses that also perform these actions. These programs can be accidentally downloaded or purposefully e-mailed you you. Needless to say, if a spy program were to be running on your computer, you're digital privacy would be very much at risk!
After you install SnoopFree Privacy Shield and reboot your computer, you should be fully protected. It's really that simple. If any program does something that may invade your privacy, SnoopFree Privacy Shield will display a warning message to you and let you decide what to do.
When you reboot your computer the SnoopFree Privacy Shield "eyes" will be visible in the task bar area of your desktop. This is usually in the lower-right area of your screen:
You can either double-click or right-click on the "eyes" to access the program's main interface.
The main interface for SnoopFree Privacy Shield has two main views: the log view and the access control view. Click on the tabs along the top of the main interface to switch between views.
If you are using a Trial Copy of the software, you will see the "Enter Registration Code" button in the lower-right corner of the Main Interface. Click on this button to verify your purchase and unlock the time restrictions.
Click on the "Okay" button to close the Main Interface.
The log view is where notable messages about the program's operation can be reviewed. The log view looks like this:
Each log entry has a timestamp as well as a text message. If the same text message is repeated several times within a second, the log entry will have a "(n times)" after it.
Click on the "Clear Log" button to erase all of the log entries.
The access control view allows you to review important information about all of the programs that SnoopFree Privacy Shield has encountered since it was installed. The access control view looks like this:
The access control view shows a list of known programs in the top area of the dialog. If SnoopFree Privacy Shield has not encountered a potential threat, nothing will be displayed here.
The program list provides the following basic information about each encountered program:
| Program Name | This is the descriptive name of the program that the author provides in the program's version information. If there is no descriptive name in the version information, the basic filename will be displayed here. |
| Restricted | This will read "Yes" if you have somehow restricted the program's access to your computer. Obviously, "No" means that the program has not been restricted yet. |
| Path | This is the full name of the program file. |
When you click on a program in the program list, more information is displayed in the "Program Details" area of the interface. The information available in the details section depends on the particular program that you have selected. The meaning of each entry in the program details list is as follows:
| Can Read Screen | This reminds you whether you have given this program permission to read your screen. It will read "Yes", "No" or "Ask". Ask means that you will be asked if this program tries to read your screen. |
| Can Hook Keyboard | This reminds you whether you have given this program permission to watch your keyboard. It will read "Yes", "No" or "Ask". Ask means that you will be asked if this program tries to watch your keyboard. |
| Can Read Un-owned Window | This reminds you whether you have given this program permission to read from windows that it does not own. It will read "Yes", "No" or "Ask". Ask means that you will be asked if this program tries to read from a window it does not own. |
| Version | This displays the version number of the program file. It will read "N/A" if there is no version information in the file. |
| Company | This displays the name of the company that created this file. If no company information is in the file, this will read "N/A". |
| Product Name | This displays the name of the product that this file belongs to. If no product information is in the file, this will read "N/A". |
| Product Version | This displays the version number of the product that this file belongs to. If no product version information is in the file, this will read "N/A". |
| Copyright | This displays the copyright information contained within the file. If no copyright information is available, this will read "N/A". |
| Description | This displays any description text contained within the file. If no descriptive text is available, this will read "N/A". |
Click on this button if you want SnoopFree Privacy Shield to forget everything it knows about the selected program file. This is useful when you want to change the permissions of the selected program file. After the file is forgotten, SnoopFree Privacy Shield will re-ask you if it attempts to do anything suspicious in the future.
Warning: Only click on this button if you are absolutely sure you want to permanently erase the selected program file. Destroying a program file is dangerous... It could cause your installed programs to stop working if you erase an important one.
Click on this button to permanently erase the selected program file. This is useful when you know that the selected program file is not supposed to be on your computer. When you click this button, you will be asked if you are sure you want to erase the file. If the file is currently in use, you will be given the option to schedule the file for deletion on the next reboot of your computer.