Looking to continue growing your portable apps collection? It's important to keep up to date with the latest privacy tools, both for offline and online use.
As such, let's explore 12 portable apps focused around privacy, so you're never caught without a layer of defense.
Why Use Portable Privacy Apps?
With so many threats circulating the internet, keeping yourself safe is more important than ever. But what if you're using another PC, away from all the admin privileges and security suites that your home computer has?
We've picked out some of the best portable security apps to keep on your USB, to make sure you're prepared wherever you go.
1. fSekrit
fSekrit is first up, and as with any great collection you want to start with the basics.
fSekrit is a special notepad program that saves any text as an encrypted and password secured EXEE file. It never saves any unencrypted data to the disk and is perfect for making sure information you jot down never gets saved to the device.
Download: fSekrit (Free)
2. Tor Browser Portable
The Tor Browser is one of many Dark Web browsers, and while it may sound scary, you can use it to browse the regular internet with heightened security.
The Tor Browser will allow you to connect to websites by routing your traffic through the Tor network, effectively disguising your connection similarly to what a VPN can achieve.
It's also portable, earning it a spot on this list as a great way to bring privacy on the go. Just be warned, using the Tor Browser isn't always 100% safe. We've written a guide on how to use Tor Browser as safely as possible to ensure everything goes smoothly.
Download: Tor Browser (Free)
3. ChromeHistoryView + MZHistoryView
We've combined two apps for this entry, as they more or less cover the same function.
ChromeHistoryView and MZHistoryView read history data from Chromium-based and Mozilla-based browsers, respectively. They give you a detailed breakdown of what was left in the browsers' history, down to the exact time a website was visited.
The data can then be extracted as a TXT file, or deleted outright. It's a great way to make sure you haven't left any tracks on whatever device you're temporarily using.
Download: ChromeHistoryView (Free)
Download: MZHistoryView (Free)
4. MUICacheView
Similar to the above entry, MUICacheView is a way to get an in-depth analysis of what you might have left behind on a computer.
MUICacheView will pull up a list of MUI Cache items, which are traces left behind by programs that have been run on the computer.
This app will allow you to view the names of these applications, and outright delete any unwanted items.
Download: MUICacheView (Free)
5. USB Oblivion
Another app that lets you take the nuclear option when you absolutely need some privacy. USB Oblivion will erase any evidence of a USB-connected device being connected to Windows.
If you've ever connected a device to Windows, Windows takes note of that, and that evidence will stay in the system forever. USB Oblivion will clear the registry of that information, making it vital for anyone who really doesn't like leaving a footprint.
Download: USB Oblivion (Free)
6. O&O ShutUp
O&O ShutUp is a privacy launcher, of sorts. It contains all the options available to you within Windows to disable tracking, extra services, advertisements, and a variety of other data-sharing functions.
Having this handy to run on any computer before you begin working on it will ensure as much privacy as you can get when temporarily using a system that isn't yours.
When you first launch it, you might get overwhelmed by the number of features you can turn off. If you don't know where to start, have a look at our guide on Windows 10 features you can safely switch off.
All in all, O&O ShutUp is a great program to have, portable or not.
Download: O&O ShutUp (Free)
7. BleachBit
BleachBit is a lot like the history cleaners from earlier, but much more wide-reaching.
BleachBit aims to remove junk data and hidden cache files, but does so from a wide range of programs, including Adobe's suite of tools.
This lightweight portable app is even capable of eliminating a Supercookie, which makes it a highly desirable app for anyone who loves their privacy.
Download: BleachBit (Free)
8. HiddeX
HiddeX is a fun one, and a program you might find yourself using on your own system. With HiddeX, you're able to quickly minimize or close programs with a fully customizable hotkey.
The programs are even hidden from the system tray and become muted. You restore it with the same hotkey. Simple, but incredibly handy for hiding what you're doing.
Download: HiddeX (Free)
9. JPEG & PNG Stripper
Another great utility, whether you're on the go or at your PC at home. JPEG & PNG Stripper is an easy-to-use metadata stripper.
Drag a photo into JPEG & PNG Stripper and clean any excess data you'd rather not be attached to that photo.
Metadata can reveal more about you than you might think, such as your location. As such, scrubbing your metadata to is extremely important in todays data-sensitive world.
Download: JPEG & PNG Stripper (Free)
10. PeerBlock
PeerBlock is pretty straightforward. It's an internet filtering program that allows you to block any and all traffic coming from specific sources.
This can include PeerBlock's in-built list of invasive websites, or your own tailored selection.
PeerBlock isn't natively portable, but linked below is a portable fork that works just as well.
Download: PeerBlock Portable (Free)
11. No Autorun
This portable app prevents any USB device, storage or otherwise, from autorunning scripts or executables.
This can be helpful in screening potentially malicious or compromised USB devices. It could also prevent the user from being annoyed by frequently-launching programs on USB devices.
No Autorun does this relatively safely, by simply disabling any autorun.inf files. Not only is this safe on the hardware in question, but it makes the program very lightweight.
Download: No Autorun (Free)
12. Clicky Gone
Finally, we have Clicky Gone. Similar in function to HiddeX, but much more comprehensive.
Clicky Gone lets you hide certain Windows using a shortcut, but Clicky Gone places them into its own custom desktop management menu.
This makes the program much more comprehensive than HiddeX, but that complexity can subtract from the intended simplicity of a program like this.
Either way, it's a great tool to keep around in your software toolkit.
Download: Clicky Gone
Make Sure to Keep Track of Your Privacy, No Matter Which Device You're Using
Keeping your privacy safe is getting harder and harder, but all that means is that your tool set will need to grow larger and larger.
These portable apps will go a long way to protect both your online presence and personal identity and can be used anywhere you go, and on any system you use.
Keeping them close at hand will never be a bad idea.