Online Security

The Problems with Public Proxy Server

So you have found a nice free proxy server. Great! Well perhaps not!

There are many well known problems with free public proxy servers. Now it is true there are generally quite easy to find (especially if you know what you're looking) however the disadvantages can lead to an enormous waste of your time, and compromise your security and identity.

The biggest problem with public proxy servers they just are not reliable. Of course the principal reason for this is because so many people can use them, after all they are free proxy servers! With somebody people using them at the same time it's very easy for the server to get overloaded, thus leaving you with an extremely slow Internet connection. Even if you're lucky and managed to find a proxy server with very few users there is a strong chance that one of those few users is abusing it. Many Internet marketing packages include scrapers to find free proxy servers, packages such as scrapeboxand Xrumer need constant supply of proxies to operate. Just one extra user can easily swamp a single proxy. The fact that software packages such as Xrumer and scrapebox are using these proxies to spam the Internet means they are often blacklisted and can't be used for many websites.

Another major disadvantage of any public proxy server, and really the biggest disadvantage of all, is that they generally do not provide true anonymity at all. The reason for this is because so many public free proxy servers are actually run by hackers and spammers, or various other organisations determined to obtain your details. these people can see all the traffic that goes through their proxy server, and can therefore extract any information from that they require.

So if you have any concern for your online privacy you will not even consider using a free proxy server, and will instead subscribe to a paid service from a reputable company such as Identity Cloaker.

Content Filtering: Australia

Since its foundation, Australia has been seen as a fairly liberal country, with an easy-going attitude towards just about everything. However, this is all about to change under the current administration, who are trying to push forward the Clean Feed internet filter for Australian internet users.

Private internet filters have been around for the last decade or so, but Clean Feed, if passed by law, would be the first national filter in the world.

We will look at the details of Clean Feed and examine its pros and cons and the potential fall out.

The proposal is a blanket censorship of thousands of websites deemed inappropriate by the Clean Feed body. This would replace the current practise of allowing each household to set their own censorship levels appropriate to the ages of internet users in their house. The kinds of sites being discussed include obviously sensitive material like pornography and drugs, but webpages discussing euthanasia, “inappropriate” political parties and over 18 rated games have also been discussed as being “RC” (refused classification). The idea is still being kicked around the Australian government, but current behind-the-scenes opinion indicates that the legislation is unlikely to get to a vote before the next general election.

The pros of this system are fairly obvious at first viewing. It aims to cut down on the amount of illegal material that is being seen and downloaded in Australia. By restricting offensive websites, younger internet users can be protected from entering sites that they didn’t mean to enter, or shouldn’t be looking at. The blanket ban on these websites removes the responsibility from internet providers and families for installing their own filters. These filters are increasingly easy to get around, and at a basic level can be simply uninstalled by a determined competent computer user, whilst a filter imposed by the internet provider and backed up by the government will be much tougher.

The Australian Labor Party minister who is campaigning for Clean Feed, Stephen Conroy, says that the filter will be carefully monitored, and regular meetings will be set up to discuss the status of controversial pages.

The cons of the Clean Feed filter are also fairly obvious. Campaigners against the programme call it “a kick in the teeth for civil liberties” and the filter has been likened to the 1984 Big Brother society, where the state controls what each individual is able to access. The general consensus amongst anti-Clean Feed protesters is that it should remain the responsibility of each family and each person to monitor their own internet usage, using their own moral compass for guidance as to what they should and shouldn’t be accessing. By allowing a higher organisation to dictate these classified sites, the general public are submitting to the moral standards of a select few non-elected individuals. The argument runs that these people are in no better and no worse position to choose what the nation should be able to access than anyone else in the country.

Another problem is where the line is drawn. In today’s increasingly sensitive society, where political correctness can cause situations to spiral way out of context, it seems unfair for the elected party to decide what counts as racism, or other inappropriate context.

Lastly, and possibly most damagingly, studies are being conducted into whether such a filter would actually provide any sort of protection. Claims that it would help tackle the rise in paedophiles using the internet as a tool for grooming have been rubbished, saying that most illegal communication happens privately, through social network sites and emails. Taking control of these would amount to a gross breach of civil liberties, and would constitute a criminal act by the government.

The potential fall out of a decision in favour of Clean Feed could be quite dramatic. Recent opinion polls have agreed with the notion of internet filters and making the web a safer places, but when asked if the government should be in charge of their internet usage, a large proportion of the interviewees said no. By pushing this legislation through, Stephen Conroy has the potential to kick up a hornet’s nest of angry Australians, which may cause the whole operation to backfire spectacularly.

As ever should Clean Feed ever get the go ahead our old favourite Identity Cloaker will be useful to break through the barrier and deliver a completely unfiltered Internet experience.

Nigerian 419 Still Going Strong

With the birth of the internet has also come the birth of the internet scam. There are as many different internet scams as there are internet users, and many of them seem very convincing.

One of the most ubiquitous, and oldest, of internet scams is the Nigerian Get Rich Quick scam.

The Nigerian Get Rich Quick scam takes many forms, but is most often done under the guise of having a Nigerian relative or official who has passed away and has left inheritance. The scammer sends an e-mail (generally poorly worded and in broken English) that names the person who has just died and that he or she is the executor of the estate. The executor of the estate requests that you send an e-mail in reply acknowledging receipt of the e-mail. Once the e-mail is replied to, a second e-mail is sent out requesting personal information from the recipient of the inheritance.

Usually the e-mail requests such things as name, date of birth, address, contact phone number, etc. Up until this point, the scam seems fairly legitimate, except, perhaps, that the recipient is not aware that he or she has a Nigerian relative.

The e-mail following the second e-mail is generally the one that tips off even Internet newcomers that there is a scam. The e-mail requests that the beneficiary send money to Nigeria for the will to be completely processed. Often, the e-mail stipulates that the estate is frozen until money is repaid to debtors. Usually the executor requests that the money be sent via Western Union money transfer, though he may also accept a money order, usually, cheques are not accepted.

Once the supposed beneficiary sends out the money, they are promised they money in a cheque sent to the address provided. Sometimes, a fraudulent cheque is sent, and other times there is no cheque at all. If the ‘beneficiary’ tries to send a subsequent e-mail asking where their money is, more often than not, the e-mail address will have been inactivated, and they will realize that they have been scammed.

This summary is only an example of one form of the Nigerian Get Rich Quick scam. Sometimes, it takes the form of having won the Nigerian Lottery, another version of the scam occurs on dating websites. Sometimes, on dating websites, Nigerians will request money to relocate to the United States, or to maintain an internet connection. There is often a promise to pay you back with money from an inheritance, or lottery winnings etc.

With the advent of better spam filters that come with modern security packages, these scam e-mails will now often not ever reach your inbox. However, spam filters will not always filer every e-mail and there are some rules of thumb to avoid getting scammed.

First, unsolicited e-mails are always suspicious, especially ones written in very broken English.

Second, paying money to get money is almost always indicative of a scam.

Thirdly, always deal locally; avoid sending money, or dealing with people who are from overseas, or ever people from different states. Laws vary from country to country, state to state, and even city to city, the closer you stay to your home, the less likely you are to get scammed. And if you do get scammed, you have more recourse with local scams that foreign ones.

So, with a little forethought, you can avoid getting scammed, and make your money only fall into the right hands.

BTW if anybody wants to enjoy seeing the scammers being scammed then go take a look at 419Eater.

Work At Home Scams

Today's economy is officially sending thousands, possibly even millions, of potential workers to the internet to find a work-at-home job. These job seekers include people recently laid off, people searching for a supplemental income, stay-at-home mothers and fathers who are wanting to contribute to the household.

It is a perfect breeding ground for scams, it would seem. You can't expect ScamBusters or the myriad of other scam registry sites to pick up and get everything, though. There is always a chance that this scam is new and not been recorded yet.

Among my favorite tell-tale signs, however, include those sites that promise you that you can make a thousand dollars in overnight. Actually, I search the internet and look through them just to compare and contrast in the creativity. I am especially fond of the folks who copy-paste the image of the e-check for $2,652.30 and grab stock images probably found on Google, and then copy-paste “reviews,” often starting with the priceless “I'm not usually one to leave a review, but Product X is the greatest thing to ever happen to me!”.

Now, there are several places that these are legitimate (aside from the apparently stock image of the e-check for $2,652.30) and are just trying to pull people in with atypical results, though odds are they are not as autopilot as they want you to believe. Now, I don't know how to break this to you all, but…THIS IS A SCAM IN ITSELF! We call it “false advertising.” To my knowledge, the only person who makes that kind of money is the creator of the system.

If this comes off cynical, this is because I am a member of several email newsletters that have been circulating from the leaders of the Google Money System circuit. Unfortunately, no names will be given, but I assure you that you've run into them once or twice. The best way I can think of to keep yourself from scams would be to avoid the any of the Money System, Google Cash, Money Tree etc, no matter how hilarious the emails they come with are.

I can guarantee you that a vast majority of them are scams and are not worth your money. You may be able to make the cover charge back in…oh, two years, maybe? If the package arrives at all?

Also, have you ever noticed that the pages that you are putting personal information into are not https? Think about that for a minute. That's right, you're not on a secure site. Anyone can find your information. To avoid scams, I would suggest joining a group such as Work At Home Moms. They always keep a sharp eye out for scams and will make sure that their group will not get associated with such a debacle. The customer service there is also top notch. If you have any questions, they will be sure to have them answered shortly. Job searchers, get your resumes ready to post!

You don't need someone to distract you with instant results and bright colors to get your income!

Honest work is the best policy!

e-Whore – The 21st Century ‘Lady’ of the Night