Peter Popov wrote:

> No, this is not an OS bashing post, it's much more serious than that.
>

> Have you downloaded shareware/freeware software recently?
> Have you installed it?
> Are you online a good deal of time?
>
> If so, please check the following URL and any links you find in it:
>
> http://grc.com/aureate.htm
>
> It *is* a serious matter and has been the main topic for discussion in
> alt.privacy, comp.security.misc and comp.security.firewalls for quite
> some time now. I thought it would be good to let you all know.

Oh, just a quick FYI.

In general the info at grc.com is detailed and accurate, whatever it is
Steve is addressing.

--
"My new computer's got the clocks, it rocks
But it was obsolete before I opened the box" - W.A.Y.

Post a reply to this message

Thanks

I've removed the offending files from my machine - but with over 40,000
files on it there could be more.

Mick

--
*************************************************************
       http://www.minda.swinternet.co.uk/index.htm

*************************************************************
"Jon A. Cruz" <jon### [at] geocitiescom> wrote in message
news:38C49752.CC2E012C@geocities.com...
> Peter Popov wrote:
>
> > No, this is not an OS bashing post, it's much more serious than that.
> >

> > Have you downloaded shareware/freeware software recently?
> > Have you installed it?
> > Are you online a good deal of time?
> >
> > If so, please check the following URL and any links you find in it:
> >
> > http://grc.com/aureate.htm
> >
> > It *is* a serious matter and has been the main topic for discussion in
> > alt.privacy, comp.security.misc and comp.security.firewalls for quite
> > some time now. I thought it would be good to let you all know.
>
> Oh, just a quick FYI.
>
> In general the info at grc.com is detailed and accurate, whatever it is
> Steve is addressing.
>
> --
> "My new computer's got the clocks, it rocks
> But it was obsolete before I opened the box" - W.A.Y.
>
>
>

Post a reply to this message

It's not this what surprises me at all. What surprises me is the amount of
people who don't know that windows is very insecure.
  I haven't connected to the internet using windows in years and I never will,
as long as I can avoid it. I will never, ever trust windows. Never.
  And this is NOT a bash. I'm talking very seriously.

-- 
main(i,_){for(_?--i,main(i+2,"FhhQHFIJD|FQTITFN]zRFHhhTBFHhhTBFysdB"[i]
):5;i&&_>1;printf("%s",_-70?_&1?"[]":" ":(_=0,"\n")),_/=2);} /*- Warp -*/

Post a reply to this message

Thanks! I'll be sending a copy of your post to all my email contacts.
I'll also be checking to see if that's why my games suddenly started
crashing. No virus has been detected, so...

Post a reply to this message

I decided before I ever hooked up that nothing I value would reside on
any machine connected to the net. Security begins in the brain...  :)

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 07 Mar 2000 10:01:26 -0800, Scott Reid <s.w### [at] homecom>
wrote:

>Thanks! I'll be sending a copy of your post to all my email contacts.
>I'll also be checking to see if that's why my games suddenly started
>crashing. No virus has been detected, so...

If you do so, please just send the URL and not my e-mail addy or name,
thank you.


Peter Popov
pet### [at] usanet
ICQ: 15002700

Post a reply to this message

The fact that a virus scanner doesn't detect a virus doesn't mean that
there isn't one.

-- 
main(i,_){for(_?--i,main(i+2,"FhhQHFIJD|FQTITFN]zRFHhhTBFHhhTBFysdB"[i]
):5;i&&_>1;printf("%s",_-70?_&1?"[]":" ":(_=0,"\n")),_/=2);} /*- Warp -*/

Post a reply to this message

http://kumite.com/myths/myths/myth036.htm
http://www.aureate.com/privacy/falserumors.html
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-202-1558696.html
http://kumite.com/myths/opinion/thoughts/2000/#000229

-- 
These are my opinions.  I do NOT speak for the POV-Team.
The superpatch: http://www2.fwi.com/~parkerr/superpatch/
My other stuff: http://www2.fwi.com/~parkerr/traces.html

Post a reply to this message

Ron Parker wrote:

> http://kumite.com/myths/myths/myth036.htm
> http://www.aureate.com/privacy/falserumors.html
> http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-202-1558696.html
> http://kumite.com/myths/opinion/thoughts/2000/#000229

I'm not so sure.

A lot of this reads very much like what Double-click said upon their
original acquistion of the identity company. Or like what MS initially
insisted about the Win95 on-line registration. Of course, things are not
nearly as bad as the initial hype, but then again there might be some
very valid concerns.

Among other things, http://grc.com/aureate.htm does specifically mention
the second and third links you have there. So go read the stuff at grc.

--
"My new computer's got the clocks, it rocks
But it was obsolete before I opened the box" - W.A.Y.

Post a reply to this message

Suggest we move this thread to o.t.?

Thanks for the info.

The basic principle of the software that the link is about seems a good
one - by which I mean shareware/freeware software writers actually stand to
make some money for once ;)

Nor does it seem appalling that the add software runs without the host
program needing to be active - after all, the adds have to be downloaded.

However IMHO, the two problems are a) the user is unaware of this running
program, and it cannot be easily uninstalled, and b) all the privacy issues
are created by the info sent from the host PC, which after all is not
necessery if the main aim is to display some adds.

I can see why the company want the additional info, but they've opened a can
of worms for themselves that they presumably could have done without. We are
rightly and naturally suspicious of advertising, and such companies do
themselves no favours by concealing their activities, whether innocently or
otherwise.

Post a reply to this message