GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

Baz[_3_] · 02-10-2011, 07:24 PM posted to uk.rec.gardening

Martin Brown wrote in
:

On 01/10/2011 12:50, Baz wrote:
Martin wrote in
news:5RAhq.140 :

I suggest you stop reading scare stories in the Daily Mail or
Express or which ever paranoid right wing tabloid rag is feeding
your delusions.

Get a grip. There are risks to being on the internet, but they can
be managed with a decent firewall and suitable anti virus and
malware tools will go a long way towards protecting you. Trouble is
people click on links and allow unknown code to run. Today even
major players distribute unsigned driver code online which is a
total disgrace.

BTW: Knowing a postcode gives you next to nothing in a city.

You should probably be a lot more scared of 118 people search
http://www.118.com/people-search.mvc

Or the fully searchable copy of the (edited) electoral roll for
England given away with a computer magazine a few years back.

If you are really worried about online banking security you can run
something like Trusteer Rapport as recommended by some banks.

http://www.trusteer.com/product/trusteer-rapport

This blocks a most of the potential weak points in common browsers
and adds another layer of protection to secure online transactions.

Regards,
Martin Brown

I may appear to be an alarmist, but truly I am not.

I have a firm grip.

I would respectfuly ask you to wait until Forensic Internet
Fraud(FIF) hits the news before you condemn me. It will no doubt
shock you.

The ability of the great unwashed to get themselves into trouble on
the Internet by clicking on dodgy links and allowing arbitrary hostile
code to run does not surprise me at all. However, the risks from far
more mundane card skimming at petrol stations, pubs and clubs is a lot
worse.

I know of a few major corporates still running XP with IE6 and WEP128
WiFi - they are the real targets for skilled blackhats. You are not.

Although there are cold caller type operations that will try to trick
you into downloading Trojan code and installing it by pretending to
help you solve a virus problem - very clever social engineering in the
script that they use. Good enough that non-experts seem to fall for
it.

And if you are thinking that the recently set up Internet ActionFraud
website can help you all they really provide is a bit bin for the
worried to send their spam to. They could not even configure their own
email system correctly to accept the spam they asked people to send to
them - rejecting it as "spam" let alone unravel forged headers. It
would make an interesting FOI question - "How many prosecutions has
this useless ineffectual quango initiated?"

Despite my criticisms of them some of their advice is just about OK
http://www.actionfraud.org.uk/suppor...ect-yourself-f
rom-fraud

I remain seriously unconvinced by Verified-by-Visa which is a textbook
example of how *not* to implement a secure transaction system.

Forensic science is used by organised criminals, as well as the
authorities. Forget paper chases for a moment and think software
chases by those who like money SO much that they will go to any
lengths to have ours.

As far as I am concerned this matter is closed until a time when it
will be taken seriously and everyone is aware.

Baz

You really do need to stop reading sensationalised paranoid rightwing
media and get a grip on reality. There are some real threats online
and they can be managed provided that you are reasonably sensible
about it.

Regards,
Martin Brown

OK then

Baz