From a recent survey about how fear of spyware/viruses has changed people’s internet habits:
- 81 per cent of net users say they have stopped opening unsolicited email attachments
- Half those quizzed (48 per cent) say they have stopped visiting potentially dodgy web sites out of spyware concerns
- A quarter (25 per cent) of those questioned said they have stopped downloading music or video files from peer-to-peer networks in order to avoid getting unwanted software programs on their computers.
- A minority of surfers (18 per cent) say they have changed the web browser software they use in order to avoid malware attack
Now, while I’m all in favor of people using some common sense on the internet, it just amuses me to no end that while almost 50 per cent of those surveyed claim to have stopped visiting “dodgy” sites, only 18 per cent bothered to change their web browser! I mean, if these people bought a package of pens, and they just kept exploding in their pockets, would they give up on writing altogether or what? And it’s not as if these “dodgy” sites are entirely devoid of useful content either. Sites offering song lyrics, guitar tabs, and porn are all riddled with pop-ups and spyware installers. (I’m sure other sites are as well, but these are the ones that come to mind =) At any rate, I guess it’s pretty easy for me to be critical here, since I have a better understanding the internet than John Q. Public, but I really don’t think the concept of “Get a new browser, watch pop-ups and spyware decrease by 99.9%” is a hard one to grasp! But perhaps there are interests that don’t want people to figure that out just yet.
In another demonstration of being “unclear on the concept,” police in Florida have arrested a man for “stealing” internet access from an unsecured wireless network. Uh-oh! Somebody better remind me not to “steal” any music or delicious smells that I might encounter drifting out a window on my way home from work today! Again, while it’s (somewhat) understandable that someone might fail to comprehend that the same device that allows them to surf the web in their bathroom might allow their next door neighbor to get online as well, it’s unreasonable to prosecute that neighbor for taking advantage of the situation! And as for the argument that the wireless freeloader might be using the connection to perpetrate illegal activities? Well, it used to be the case that the culpability for any such behavior would rest solely on the person actually committing the crime, but thanks to the entertainment industry’s insistence that Napster, Grokster and so on be held responsible for the actions of their users, I guess a precedent has been set for prosecuting the network provider instead. So shame on you , Mr. Unsecured Wireless Network. How dare you encourage the trafficking of child pornography and stolen bank data?!?! You sir, are worse than Hitler! =)
One more thing, while I’m on this rant. I swear to god, if I have to read one more news story where “Wi-Fi” is translated as “Wireless Fidelity” I am going to mow down some fuckers! (Or at the very least, I’ll be slightly more annoyed than I am already =) It is a play on words that was never intended to be rendered in a non-abbreviated form goddammit!!