Index.dat files

The index.dat files are used by Internet Explorer mainly in the Temporary Internet Files folder and the History folder.

In the Temporary Internet Files folder, Internet Explorer saves the index.dat file to track each web site you visit. That way, when it needs to retrieve cached pages, it can do so by reading the data in the index.dat file for a needed site.

Example of a single entry in the index.dat:

   ~U:username
   URL . pw—.RÆÁ. c. ` h . ..¤ A. ´  h,ú.. h,ú.
   http://www.u-wipe.com/indexdat.htm index[1].htm 
   HTTP/1.1 200 OK
   Content-type: text/html
   Page-Completion-Status: Normal
   Page-Completion-Status: Normal

The file can be viewed using any text editor. That is enough to re-create all your Internet history. Of course, it requires a full access to your computer, but who knows!

Our research shows that index.dat files contain information for over than 5 months. The files become larger and larger - up to 100 MB. Index.dat files are always being used by windows system, you can not delete them manually, and even you clear Temporary Internet Files on Internet Option of Internet Explorer, it will not delete them. And U-Wipe can.