What is Digg?30 Comments
- SarahC, on 08/10/2008, -1/+22The same password for all online accounts?
Who would be that stupid?
*Starts trawling through history list* - virtualonliner, on 08/10/2008, -3/+24Dugg for "5. Thinking Your Mac Shields You From All Risks".
- zenithmbr, on 08/10/2008, -4/+21#8.) Refrain from being a ***** idiot.
- talonstriker, on 08/11/2008, -0/+14I am that stupid because I'm too lazy to remember 15 different passwords.
- MtheoryX, on 08/10/2008, -2/+16A few responses...
1.) Security software can never replace education and common sense. Also, you don't always have to pay for security software that was bundled with your computer purchase; there are alternatives: Zone alarm, avast, etc.
2.) Try right-click, copy link, and paste into the browser, or into a text editor. If it looks funky, 9 times out of ten, it's fake. Regardless, don't directly click anything in an email. And more importantly, try to educate your "non-tech" friends and family members about this.
3.) This is always a tough one for most people...even if they are tech savvy. I suggest getting a good password management application or toolbar for this.
4.) I haven't been in the Windows game for quite awhile, but from what I can remember, the free software thing is a minefield.
5.) Safari is limited, WebKit Nightly Builds are slightly better, Opera is still a small player, but Firefox reigns supreme.
6.) Pop ups? Seriously? We're still dealing with this? I placed too much faith in humanity and general education of the masses, it seems.
7.) Always use a credit card...it doesn't have to be a "separate" card to ensure your rights are protected.
Otherwise, pretty good article. I just wish my extended family were able to follow guidelines I try to teach them. But then, what would I have to talk about during the holidays? - focom, on 08/11/2008, -0/+12Remembering the passwords isn't the hard part, it's remembering which passwords go with which accounts... I hate having to cycle through a list of passwords every time I access an account I haven't used for a while.
- inactive, on 08/11/2008, -0/+6i just froze my credit
like abstinence it is 100% security - sjps220, on 08/11/2008, -2/+7Avoid free software? seriously?
- drex8, on 08/11/2008, -1/+6How did this reach the front page of Digg? If there were a Digg for kids, or for soccer moms, I'd have understood an article like this getting atleast 2k or 3k diggs. As itwasstinky said, this is a list for computer retards, who spends most of their time on myspace or IMs chatting away with their stupid friends.
- inactive, on 08/11/2008, -3/+7this is a list for general computer retards . buried as lame
- joshualamgroup, on 08/11/2008, -0/+4"free" as in shareware/adware/crapware, etc.
Not "free" as in Open Source, like Firefox, OpenOffice.org... - FUR10N, on 08/11/2008, -0/+3I use the same password for everything but use new usernames for each account. Keeps the thieves on their toes.
- Dozernotz, on 08/11/2008, -1/+4Maybe they're referring to the crackspider variety.
- sysop073, on 08/11/2008, -0/+3"Tell your kids that free software is often anything but"
Oh good, now we can have an army of kids yelling "Linux Danger! Linux Danger!" - melonhedd, on 08/11/2008, -0/+2They still exist. Paypal has them too.
- shoediva, on 08/11/2008, -0/+2This is why I don't like shopping on line, you think it's safe but it's not. I even don't like using
ATM cards, you think their safe but they're not, just got double charged at a 7-11. - inactive, on 08/11/2008, -1/+3what ever happened to those 1 time use credit card numbers you could get through your bank's website, or visa.com?
- inactive, on 08/10/2008, -0/+1A lot of it is just common sense which unfortunately I lacked on occasion when I got burned
- simg, on 08/11/2008, -0/+1sound advice, but seldom followed ...
- inactive, on 08/12/2008, -0/+1I keep hoping someone will steal my identity. They are going to be REAL disappointed when they apply for a credit card in my name. :)
- douchrti, on 08/12/2008, -0/+1You got that right mtheoryx, education and common sense.
- sjps220, on 08/11/2008, -0/+1I know they clarified somewhat, and I see what they're saying. At the same time, making the title of one of your points about security to avoid free software just supports those feelings some have that programs like firefox or opera aren't as safe as other browsers because they're free.
- redwallhp, on 08/11/2008, -0/+1The free software is a minefield yes, but scaring people away from free software is not a good idea. So you want less people to use open source software? If you have any sense you'll be able to spot a disreputable piece of software from a mile away. Oh, and stay away from free animated cursors and screensavers, 7/10 are bad.
No, your Mac won't protect you from phishing. You will have less trouble with viruses though. There are very few mac-specific malware, and most of them are trojans, a.k.a. stuff masquerading as legitimate software...and requiring your admin password to install. No drive-by crap like yo uget with Windows. Oh, and unless your a hapless n00b, you probably shouldn't waste money or CPU cycles on antiviral software for the Mac platform either. There are none that scan for mac-specific viruses yet, only packages that scan for windows-based viruses in effort to prevent your mac from becoming a "carrier," inadvertently aiding the spreading of viruses while you, blissfully unaware, forward the emails they're in or whatever. But if you're on Windows, I can't stress this enough: Make sure you have up to date security software. And like the article says, tread carefully around those "your computer may not be protected" pop-up ads. They generally install smitfraud variants that are a real pain to remove, and they cause all manner of mayhem. Believe me, you'll know when you've got one.
Oh, and I prefer Firefox to Safari, but I'd recommend it to you for reasons other than anti-phishing software. I find anti-phishing toolbars idiotic and just extra clutter/weight in Firefox. I'm a web developer, and I can normally spot a phishing scam from a mile off. I don't need someone else to advise me through phishing software, and then have a pile of false positives. - secleinteer, on 08/11/2008, -0/+1http://www.supergenpass.com/
- entertainchange, on 08/11/2008, -1/+1LOL - somebody should send this to the Wall Street Journal - they could use a read-up: http://digg.com/tech_news/Bad_Advice_in_the_Wall_S ...
- novakyu, on 08/11/2008, -0/+0I used to be that stupid.
Thankfully, these days I use unique, randomly-generated passwords for all my online accounts. I can still memorize the important ones (by magic of finger memory), and I let a program (like pwsafe) memorize the rest for me. - novakyu, on 08/11/2008, -2/+0I'm guessing that they meant "freeware".
Alas, "free software" (as in freedom) is too generic a term to be trademarked and protected by Free Software Foundation (even if they had resources to waste on such marginal issues). - BowieX, on 08/11/2008, -3/+1Anyone else have one or two memorized "password stubs," to which you add on the end a short word, acronym or number relating to the website or company? I find this an easily memorable yet strictly personal method.
To demonstrate with different examples, if your password stub is h0m0fag39 or something, you could add the letters "digg" for Digg, "08ama" or something for Obama, "4chan" for 4chan, and "mac," "app," "apple" and "jobs" to the end of the four different Apple sites you visit. - normalkid0615, on 08/11/2008, -7/+2only 8 comments and 150 diggs on front page? uh? hu?
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