Does anyone know of a password protected browser for the iMac?
I have Atomic Browser for my iPad and would like something similar for my iMac.
It needs to be quite simple (like safari ideally) but need to able to bookmark sites, use history etc so the multitude of "private" browsers (that don't store cookies, history etc) are no good.
Many thanks in advance.
iMac, Mac OS X (10.7.4)
in most cases people handle this by making several user accounts on their computer and when kids or the likes use it they use a user which have limited access compared to root
it's bad practice to password protect each apps
Rudegar:
Thanks for your response but that is not what I am solving for...
Multiple accounts won't help me with this situation.
Multiple accounts won't help me with this situation.
Why not? That's what accounts are for. If you simply don't allow anyone else to use your account and log out (or use fast user switching or a password-protected screensaver), then you will avoid the problem without needing a locked web browser.
I'm not aware of any web browsers on the Mac that support password protection, because that's a clunky way to handle a problem that's already handled for you by the OS.
Hey, you guys are cracking me up....
Seriously, you've never had a girlfriend or significant other who likes to check what you are viewing on the web?
I just wondered if there was something like atomic web for the iMac...
That is a fabulous app.
You can go to Parental Controls and disable Safari. Then you have to input your password before everytime you use it. Make sure you click "Allow Once".
You could install a third party browser into a locked disk-image (and hide the disk-image in an obscure place) as long as it would be highly unlikely that your significant other would download and install the browser on their own.
Seriously, you've never had a girlfriend or significant other who likes to check what you are viewing on the web?
Honestly, no. If I had a wife or girlfriend who didn't trust me far enough not to snoop on my web surfing habits, I would take that as a serious indication of an unhealthy relationship. I don't snoop on my wife like that, and she doesn't snoop on me, and we've been happily married for almost 20 years now.
But even if you do have that concern, I still don't understand the problem. Don't let your significant other use your account. Period. If the computer is shared, set her up with an account of her own to use. If she's so suspicious that she questions this, tell her you almost messed up some of her files and you want to make sure that doesn't happen again.
If you absolutely insist on letting her use the same account, turn on private browsing in Safari (in the Safari menu) whenever you're visiting sites you don't want her to see.
I just tried that but apparently you have to enable parental control for the whole account first... I hope that won't create more issues...
Come on, now. If you don't have an answer for the guy **** off if he already said your suggestion doesn't work for what he wants. He's probably not using it in whatever way you're thinking and/or has already tried any solution that he's saying "thanks but that's not quite what I'm looking for" to.
Por ejemplo. Say he plays a game/uses a program that has a lot of waiting periods, so he wants, during this waiting period, to use a password-protected browser to search the web for whatever he wants. On top of this, he wants to be able to have all the convenience of NOT being in private browsing mode and/or not clearing his history, i.e. bookmarks, restoring the last session, etc. And to top it all off, the app/game he uses? He wants the data saved on the public account.
So there. Multiple accounts does not solve this particular problem. So instead of saying, "Well, I don't see HOW it doesn't solve it" either give the man what he wants or say "sorry I couldn't help." Jesus Christ. Why are people on forums unable to do this?
[Now, to do my part and offer a suggestion]:
I don't know of any password-protected browsers, but you can try putting the browser itself (since Mac is awesome like this) on a thumb drive or possibly a TrueCrypt volume. TrueCrypt, in layman's terms, is a way of creating a virtual, password-protected "thumb drive."
First, note that you're replying to a post from 2012. FTTLeader is undoubtedly long gone. His account shows no more recent activity on this site.
Second, note that your suggestion of putting the browser on a flash drive or encrypted volume is a poor one. The data - such as browsing history - is not stored in the app, so you'd be securing nothing. That data would still be on the hard drive. Also, as an aside, note that the creators of TrueCrypt are now actively recommending against its use.
You could always assume that the snoop in question isn't smart enough to figure out how to access that data. But that's a dangerous assumption to make. He/she could Google it, ask for advice on a forum or seek help from a more tech-savvy friend.
Honestly, there is no good answer to his question, which is why Rudegar and I gave the answers we did. He was thinking about the problem wrong.
Does anyone know of a password protected browser for the iMac?
