ArchiCrypt Stealth for Windows

Bring your Web surfing to a dead stop with this privacy software. That wasn't the intention of the publisher, but it is the result of using many of the proxy servers found by this utility. ArchiCrypt Stealth's interface isn't the most professional looking you'll find in this genre, but buttons are well labeled, and there is a good internal consistency to the various pages. Novice users would do well to read the overview before wading into this app.

Web surfing privacy software lives and dies by how good are its proxies. Save for one, every proxy we tested that was found through this utility brought our surfing to a standstill. The program's other functions worked well, although they were not all well designed. The Web site blocker stops select pages from loading, but adding sites to the blocked list was tedious. The Content Filter and Cookie Manager also suffered from an inability to quickly add multiple sites to the blocked list. A very simple spyware component did make it simple to filter Active-X components.

ArchiCrypt Stealth's functions are well extended with plug-ins, and the program's plug-in editor makes it possible for experienced users to create their own functions. The demo is limited to listing 10 proxy servers. This isn't the perfect Web-surfing privacy tool, but intermediate to advanced users might find some use for the extras if not for its proxy capabilities.