Release Notes for VIPRE Privacy Shield - November 18, 2019

Written By Marissa Fegan (Super Administrator)

Updated at June 1st, 2020

Product release information for VIPRE Privacy Shield version 3.4.6, released on November 18, 2019.

Product Information

VIPRE Privacy Shield keeps your private details out of the bad guys’ hands with the ultimate privacy maintenance software! It scans your computer for exposed personal information that could, in the wrong hands, allow someone to steal your identity. Privacy Shield allows you to see the details of what and where sensitive personal data resides and to clean your system with a click.

What's New

This major release includes the following new features and enhancements.

  • Search the Dark Web: The dark web is where the criminal underground buys and sells captured personal data for people like you. You can now search that same web to see if your personal data has been previously exposed.
  • Ad Blocker: Online advertisements can get in the way of your web browsing by slowing things down and making it hard to read the content you want. Ads can also be used to track you from site to site, allowing advertisers to build a profile of you so they can sell you more stuff. Protect your privacy and stop those pesky ads by enabling our browser extensions which will block those ads from displaying and speed up your browsing.
  • Guided Tour for first-time users: Our new guided tour wizard takes first time users through the product, explaining how to use each feature. It provides recommendations for how to respond to the items that Privacy Shield reports to you.

System Requirements

Important: VIPRE Privacy Shield uses advanced technologies for today’s newer operating systems and does not install on Windows XP or Vista.

Hardware and Operating Systems

To install and run VIPRE Privacy Shield, you need a PC with

  • 50 MB of hard drive space
  • At least 1 GB of RAM
  • Dual-core processor (recommended)
  • Internet connection (broadband recommended) 
  • 32- or 64-bit versions of either
    • Windows 10 (all versions)
    • Windows 8.1
    • Windows 7 (latest service pack)

Web Browsers 

Our Tracking blocker extensions are currently available for the latest versions of

  • Microsoft® Edge
  • Mozilla® Firefox®
  • Google Chrome™

Our Browsing and tracking records feature currently supports the latest versions of

  • Microsoft® Edge
  • Microsoft® Internet Explorer
  • Mozilla® Firefox®
  • Google Chrome™

Product and company names are trademarks and registered trademarks of their respective owners.

Known Issues and Workarounds

This section lists issues that are known at the time of release. In some cases, these are bugs that we are working to resolve with a subsequent release. Other items may be due to causes outside of our control, such as bugs with other vendors' software. In all cases, we have tried to provide a workaround for you to consider, should you experience an issue.

If you have questions about a specific issue, please provide the issue ID (if applicable) when contacting our Technical Support team.

Issue: The Microsoft Edge browser extension says it's from "an unknown source" [IDSHIELD-21]

In Microsoft Edge when viewing the details of the web browser extension, the descriptive text reads "From an unknown source”.

WorkaroundNone. The extension works correctly. This text will be updated in a future release.

Issue: Can't use a webcam blocker. Error message "Camera is being used by another application!" is displayed [IDSHIELD-33]

When attempting to enable the webcam blocker, an error message is displayed. The text of the message is

Camera is being used by another application! Please close all applications using this device and click on "Retry". Alternatively, you can reboot your computer for the configuration changes made to the system to take effect. Save your work and click "Yes" to restart now or "No" to cancel configuration changes.

Workaround: Either Retry or click Yes to restart your computer. This is an issue with how Windows determines if other applications are using a webcam. The extension works correctly. This text will be updated in a future release.

Issue: Pop-up window about my scans has different scan numbers than the main product screen [IDSHIELD-36]

The scan summary notification pop-up may not display the same scan information as the actual product screen.

Workaround: None. The function of the pop-up notification is to alert you that you have completed a scan, but have not yet taken action. The details in the "notification graphic" may not reflect the details in the actual scan screen.

Issue: Trying to enter CAPTCHA information on websites does not work [IDSHIELD-103]

When entering CAPTCHA information on a website, the CAPTCHA check fails with the Tracking Blocker enabled. CAPTCHA is a technology used by some websites to try to prevent automated "bots" from creating accounts or logging in to their sites; unfortunately, CAPTCHA can also cause private information to leak to the authentication provider (which is often not the website you are trying to visit).

Workaround 1: Stop blocking tracking for the specific website

To stop blocking tracking for a website

1. When visiting the website with the CAPTCHA, open the VIPRE Identity Shield Tracking Blocker extension in your browser

2. On the Home tab, switch "Block tracking attempts for this site" to No

Warning: If you turn off the tracking blocker for a website, the site will be able to track you and potentially gather personal information.

3. Remember to re-enable the tracking blocker for this website when done.

Workaround 2: Temporarily disable the Tracking Blocker entirely

To turn off blocking tracking for all websites

1. Open the VIPRE Identity Shield application

2. On the Tracking Blocker tab, switch Tracking Blocker to Disabled

Warning: If you turn off the tracking blocker, all websites will be able to track you and potentially gather personal information.

3. Remember to re-enable the tracking blocker when done.

Bugs Fixed in This Release

Bugs fixed with this release are listed in this section.

  • License management: The product fails to properly register under certain circumstances.