Microsoft has outlined the new privacy tools available in its forthcoming browser Internet Explorer 8 (IE8).

Earlier this week the company’s program manager Andy Zeigler confirmed rumours from last week that Microsoft would include a privacy browsing feature affectionately known as "porn mode".

He said four new controls with be available in IE8 for people keen to take their web browsing “off the record”.

Features expected to appear in IE8 beta 2, due later this month, include the ability for web surfers to manage their history, cookies and other info stored by the browser. They will also be able to control how their browsing history is shared by websites.

Microsoft’s “InPrivate Browsing” tool has caused quite a kerfuffle among bloggers over the past few weeks. Dubbed “porn mode”, the feature, when enabled, will switch off cookies, browsing and search history, and it won't save form data and passwords. In addition, it will automatically clear the cache at the end of the browser session.

“InPrivate Subscription” will let surfers subscribe to lists of websites to block or allow, while “InPrivate Blocking” will inform users about sites that might check their browsing history and give them the power to block it. ®