Clickbait

I came across a site today that really resonates with me. The title is Clickbait. This lady is telling it like it is.

I think most of us have been ‘teased’ at one time or another by a clickbait site. Those titles like ’15 reasons you shouldn’t eat sushi’ or ’20 Lies You Probably Believe’ that entice you to keep clicking because there is only one item per page and that page is covered with ads!

There is a certain website ad on Facebook that posts those enticing titles that started me thinking about this. (Facebook is full of links that we shouldn’t click) I clicked the link and then it was click, click, click, over and over. Teasers galore, click, click, click. Just an effort to show you more ads. I was curious about this site so I copied the URL and removed everything that appeared after the site URL.

There was no click, click, click. All those teasers were on one page.

What’s going on here? I have wondered how much time these folks devote to creating all those pages. And I think I know. Not much time at all. They just create their normal pages which are probably ok and then they use a clickbait generator!

I did some searching and found lots of site for clickbait.

Here are some of them.

https://thestack.com/world/2015/10/15/machine-learning-generates-clickbait-headlines-that-will-shock-you/

http://www.adweek.com/creativity/create-your-own-overly-emotional-click-baiting-headline-upworthy-generator-153984/

The dirty secrets of clickbait. This post will blow your mind!

https://econsultancy.com/blog/64399-the-dirty-secrets-of-clickbait-this-post-will-blow-your-mind/

The Dead Simple Headline Formula You Can Use To Generate Millions of Pageviews

https://skillcrush.com/2014/01/23/click-bait-tips/

I will certainly avoid those teaser sites if I possibly can. I don’t have a problem with folks trying to make a few dollars, but I hate being teased!

This is what got me started on the quest for clickbait:

I clicked this link from Facebook.

http://honesttopaws.com/trailer-park-cats/2/?bdk=b702aol&as=702aol&pas=1

Looks like clickbait for sure. But when I removed all the extra stuff and got this:

http://honesttopaws.com/trailer-park-cats/

It looked like a normal site, not clickbait.

I never cease to be amazed at what goes on with the Internet!

The Internet

Ah the Internet! Full of the most interesting things. Educational things, documentaries, funny stuff, sad stuff and of course all those cat videos.

But there is a dark side to the Internet as well. Hackers and scammers just to name a few.

One of the biggest problems on the Internet are the folks with agendas. Some of them are so clever you really don’t realize what is happening.

There is software available that can edit any video to make it seem something entirely different from the original.

There is software that can edit any photo to make it look different than the original by adding or subtracting objects or people.

When you see one of these edited videos or photos you probably won’t be able to tell if it has been altered in any way.

So how can you know what to believe?  Just be skeptical. If it seems really out of character for someone, check it out. Don’t let your personal beliefs persuade you it must be true, just because you think it is, or would like it to be true.

Agendas can be in places where you would least suspect them. They can be in schools, churches, social gatherings and even families. They can be extremely subtle or outright blatant, but agendas are every where.

Then there are the conspiracy theories. Some are really bizarre, but others are rather believable, especially if they fit what you want to believe.. Usually these conspiracy  theories are started by someone with a not so hidden agenda, Some may have a bit of truth but are so exaggerated it’s hard to see how people can believe them. The sad truth is the Internet has made folks gullible!

If you find that hard to believe,  just look at all the hoaxes out there! First they came in in our email and now on social networking sites like Facebook. Some hoaxes were so outlandish it’s hard to believe that anyone fell for them, but they did by the thousands and passed them on to everyone in their contact list or on Facebook.

Still I would not want to be without the Internet. If it weren’t for the Internet I wouldn’t be able to stream TV and I would still be paying outrageous cable bills. I wouldn’t be able to shop online (that might be good, though).

Good or bad, agenda, conspiracy theories, jokes and cat videos, I still love the Internet!

Ah, Facebook!

What I want to read on Facebook.

I want to see my family and friends and how they are doing.

I like funny stuff like cat and doggy videos.

What I don't want to read on Facebook.

Anything about politics or religion ( I have my opinion about both and anything I see on Facebook will not change my mind)

I don't want to 'copy and paste' someone else's post. (I have to admit to being guilty of this, but I am trying to be selective and only share funny stuff.)

I don't want to click links to quizzes that just are there to capture your stuff. This 'Place of birth' could be another way for scammers to add to profiles for ID theft.

I see no reason to re-post, share or otherwise comment on whether I love my kids, or other family members.

I know most of the weird stuff could be hoaxes, photo-shopped or unsubstantiated rumors, so I just wish folks would check it out before posting.  I know it’s all too easy to just click share and go on, but think!

And remember the majority of those posts denigrating someone or someone, are probably by someone somewhere with a *hidden agenda!

Think before you share!

*http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=hidden%20agenda

Don't Believe Everything You See, Hear or Read On The Internet!

I have gotten to the point where I don’t believe hardly anything I read on the Internet, including Facebook. I don't always believe what I read in print either. There are just too many trolls, mischief makers and downright liars out there.

I suppose I can still believe most of what I see in real life, but with technology evolving so much I am beginning to wonder about that as well. (And if I go shopping I sometimes have a problem believing what some folks are willing to wear in public!)

Some folks take a grain of truth (maybe truth) and blow it all out of proportion to reality.

Some folks may not like a politician, a political party, a situation and want to make the world believe something is true when it isn't. (Think Birthers) The fact is you just can't believe any third party accounts any more as there is no telling if what they say is true or not. This can include almost anyone, including friends and/or family members. They are most likely well meaning and they may believe what they are saying is true, but in fact, they may just want to believe it and want you to believe it as well.

I don't answer the phone much any more either. You can't trust Caller ID anymore either as the scammers know how to spoof who they are including names AND numbers. They frequently use spoofed names such as ‘Toll Free Call’, ‘Support Center’, or even an important sounding name such as US Government.

The scammers masquerade as someone calling from Microsoft (Microsoft doesn't call anyone unless the person has an ongoing problem ticket initiated by them.) The scammers could be a collection agency using illegal tactics to make folks think they have to pay up whether they owe anything or not. The list goes on and on. I wish I could block these scammers, but they would just change the number and keep calling. Once your number is added to a list, it is in the wild and anyone can buy those lists.

Martha

Facebook, Do I Need It?

I keep thinking about leaving Facebook, but so far I haven’t. I just wish I could hide some posts, especially all those posts about politics.

Some folks on my Facebook are die hard political fanatics. I really don’t want to read the lies that are put out by both parties, the GOP and Dems alike.  They both have too many absurdities to be believed, but that doesn’t seem to make much differences to folks. Those political posts just keep coming.

Then there are the sappy posts. Like ‘If you love your son  share” or other goofy crap.

Ah the hoaxes! So many and so few to dispute them.

And don’t forget the religious posts. Lots and lots of them. I have nothing against religion, but is it really something for Facebook? Especially since there are so many different religions and not everyone feels the same way about others beliefs.

I mistakenly thought Facebook was for family members and real friends to connect with one another about real things like what’s going on in your lives.  Some folks seem to ‘friend’ anyone and everyone whether the know them or not. I guess that’s ok, but this is how the scammers get in and who knows what damage they will do?

I know Facebook has to make revenue in order to keep this monster going. I don’t have a problem with that. But the latest thing that Facebook wants to impose on us is just about the limit.

Oh, Brother: Here Come Facebook’s New Video Ads… That Autoplay In Your Feed

I have no doubt the marketers will jump on it. I will then leave Facebook for sure. (Maybe)

I just wish we could have rules for Facebook like the ones in my Yahoo Groups. (No political and religious posts allowed)

Hoaxes Abound, Especially on Facebook

I have to wonder, why are there so many hoaxes on the Internet? I suspect there is a small number of folks that just take delight in fooling people.

They used to come mainly in emails sent by worried friends who want to protect us. They warned us about all of the bad things just waiting to happen to us if we don’t watch out, so ‘forward this to everyone you know’.

They also told us about the really great things that Microsoft or other big companies would give us if we just forward the email to ‘everyone we know’.

And let’s not forget about all of the evil things that will happen to our computers, including total destruction. All of this silliness just kept coming and coming, with supposed references to the news, Snopes or other sources. However, if anyone took the time to investigate,  the hoax would be quickly determined to be just that, a hoax.

Now the hoaxers have a great big wonderful venue to perpetrate their false missives. Facebook can reach so many more folks so much faster!  I discovered that Snopes (Snopes is a site to help dispel hoaxes) now has 344 Facebook hoaxes as of this writing and by the time you read this there will probably be more.  Truth or Fiction is another site to research to ‘get the truth’. Another site is Facecrooks. (I like this one!)

I wish there was a way to convince my gullible friends to think about these things before they perpetrate the hoax. There are almost always clues to indicate it is a hoax. These warnings always seemed to include ‘send this to everyone you know’, or ‘post it to all your friends’.

If you think it’s better to be safe than sorry and go ahead and post or email that hoax, you really need to think again. That’s how these hoaxes spread, by well meaning folks who ‘don’t want to take a chance’ and don’t bother to research.

To check it out, go to Google or your favorite search engine. You will probably find out very quickly if it’s true or not. You can check with Snopes, Truth or Fiction and even the website of that TV station that supposedly reported it.

Just don’t make the hoaxers happy by posing hoaxes!

Sneaky Spam

The things that spammers try never cease to amaze me. They always try to keep a step ahead of unsuspecting folks by using new tactics to get attention.

For my website I have a contact form for users to ask questions or just make comments about the site. I made this site back when Windows XP was young and a lot of folks used the email that came with XP, Outlook Express.  I used to get a lot of questions about Outlook Express and I still get a few questions, but for the most part the feedback form just generates those folks trying to sell me an SEO service. I don’t answer those as I even have a notice telling those folks I won’t answer.

I seldom get any other type of spam, but today I did! While it was a bit clever and made me laugh, I wonder why it was even done?

The spam:

Name of sender: Kathie
Email of sender: kathiekearns@gmail.com
------------------------- COMMENTS -------------------------
Hello, I am writing in an unusual case ... Some time ago, I used your services, and one of your employees face was familiar to me. At dinner with my wife, it turned out that he was a burglar, who 5 years ago broke into our home!!! This is ridiculous!!! How you can hire criminals? I found at least 3 bad entries for him at website for background check http://everifies.com !! I am sure there are more!!! Please do something about it, things like that are ridiculous!!!

Normally I wouldn’t have clicked that link, but I did accidentally and here is what came up:



So some spammer is way behind and wasting their time.

My website needs a serious overhaul and I am not quite sure what to do about it, but turning it into a blog may be the answer.

Martha

Observations About Neo

When folks started fussing and whining about 'neo', I didn't understand. My Yahoo ID was working as always, no changes. In fact it still is but who knows for how long.

So I created a new Yahoo email account and joined with two of my Yahoo Groups.  In order to see what other owner/moderators were seeing, I made this new ID an owner on one of the groups and started testing.

Perhaps since I belong mainly to tech groups, I wasn't seeing all of the issues a lot of others were seeing. We don't really use the database option and don't rely on lots and lots of photos as these are used mainly for screenshots to aid in troubleshooting.

There was a 'glitch' in the bouncing members section, as it was showing some folks as bouncing that are no longer members, even a few that had been banned for bad conduct.

Otherwise all functions worked as they should.  Things were somewhat harder to find, but by exploring, looking and testing I managed to find just about everything. One thing of note, most everything now seems to using JavaScript. So if users have disabled scripts by using an add-on like 'noscript' for Firefox or a similar add-on for other browsers, the Yahoo Groups interface is virtually unusable.

Once noticeable thing that seemed to put a lot of folks off was the fact that the Home page has now been moved to the About page and customization that was done previously is almost 'missing in action'.

The customization does not seem so important to folks in tech groups, although it is nice. Using the neo profile, the first thing that I noticed when I got to the home page is a large somewhat blurry photo of a keyboard section with the name of the group in the lower left corner.



From comments by others and looking at some other groups with my neo ID, I have the impression that a large number of groups have basically the same photos, depending on the type of Group.

What seems odd to me is that both of my Yahoo email accounts that are IDs for Groups have  neo in the web address. Both email accounts work the same. Another thing, I belong to several groups that originated in Canada and they are still showing the old 'classic' format, but I have heard from some folks in UK groups that say they are on the neo format.

In December 2007, Yahoo supposedly had over 109 million members across 8.8 million groups.  Recent estimates by some put those numbers much higher.

I guess with that many members and groups there is bound to be a lot of problems changing everyone over to a new format.

By now there could be more or less, as supposedly a lot of disgruntled folks have closed their groups and moved elsewhere.  According to Wikipedia, nearly half a million group members have left Yahoo due to the "neo" format. The number grows each day. Keep in mind, Wikipedia can be edited by almost anyone, including unhappy folks.

Yahoo's mail servers have been glitchy off and on for as long as I have been a member of groups. It is just one of Yahoo's 'gotchas' and that hasn't improved yet. However, some folks seem to think it is neo related, but I think it's just the same as always.

So why did Yahoo change the Groups from the old 'classic' to the new 'neo' format?  My best guess is the underlying code has slowly been corrupted with too many programmers making too many 'improvements' over the years.  Like when 'too many cooks spoil the broth', it has just gotten too much to try to fix.  Most of us know, there comes a time when the old is out and in with the new.

Technology marches on, and if we don't march with it, we get left behind.

Martha

The Problems With Yahoo’s Neo Groups

Seems like there are a lot of problems with neo, but it also seems like its who you ask. There is a cadre of folks trying to force Yahoo to get rid of neo and bring back the old format. (Sorry folks, it won’t happen!) Some but not too many folks say they like the new format.

As with anything new and changed, there is a number of folks that are resistant. Same is true with neo. One of the biggest problems is the change is not happening all at once to everyone to everyone or to every group.

It appears to be a work in progress. Bringing back features seem to be happening, but isn’t consistent and doesn’t always seem to ‘stick’. Lots of things are there, but hidden and some are broken for now.

Pros so far, clean interface. Ease of switching from one group to another is MUCH easier. Posts entered while on the website are almost immediate.

Cons so far, almost too many to name. Post delivery to Inboxes extremely sporadic and sometimes never happens or days later.  (This has happened many times before neo came into being.)  Some groups are neo, some are not.  Seems to be random.

For the average user neo seems to be working ok, although the banner is not what users are used to seeing. Group owners are having a hard time trying to remove or change that banner if they have been transferred to neo, impossible if they are still using the old format. The mail delivery is probably the thing that impacts them the most.

Group owners and moderators are having the worst of it. Functions they normally perform to keep the groups working are often not working and some are having a problem even finding where those functions are located.

In my neo ID, I have found most of what I need. So far what I see that will impact a lot of users, the photos cannot be downloaded easily. This wouldn’t bother me much, but for some users this is a major problem, also for some types of groups. Many owners keep track of bouncing members.  The bouncing list in my neo ID shows every member, past and present that has ever appeared on the bouncing list. This is obviously broken and is an example of stuff that stays on the web forever!

The list of problems seems endless, but everyday some more things get fixed and eventually I hope it will all work.

The biggest issue of all was the fact that Yahoo didn't tell folks about neo before they implemented it.

Martha

Uproar At Yahoo Groups

About a month ago I started hearing about neo.  At the time I had no idea what it was and for awhile I thought they were talking about Yahoo Mail, since that has been a hot topic ever since Yahoo ‘upgraded’ their mail app.

Boy was I wrong. Yahoo is again changing the feature I use the most with Yahoo, Groups. They tried to change it several years ago to resemble something like Facebook, but there was such an uproar the change didn’t happen.

But the change this time is not to each Group but to each user and the changes are not happening to everyone at once.

So what one user sees at his Group’s web interface is not what someone else is seeing and now the confusion reigns supreme.  It’s even worse for Group moderators who can’t even get logged in sometimes and when they do they can’t do the job that a moderator is supposed to do.

Since at this time I haven’t been ‘neo-nized’ it’s a bit hard for me to  understand what it means. However I expect it will happen sooner or later as I doubt Yahoo is going to back down this time.

The uproar is deafening in the Yahoo forums. Supposedly millions of members have left, thousands of Groups moved to other venues and been removed from Yahoo. At least one Group is threatening lawsuits, contacting the ADA, contacting their Congressman, the press and any other organization they think can put a stop to this ‘neo’.

I never cease to be amazed at these folks.  I suspect the majority have forgotten that the Yahoo Groups are basically a free service. Yahoo has the right to change this service at any time and even terminate the entire Groups program if they so choose.

In order to survive in the modern world of the ‘world wide web’, things must be updated. Eventually old code gets corrupted and stuff no longer works the way it should and is open to hacking.

I know these folks have been members a long time.  They have amassed albums of photos and files. Some of these Groups have thousands of members.  There are Groups for every kind of medical condition and they provide support not immediately possible elsewhere. There are Groups for dogs and dog problems and the lists go on and on. They are fighting for what is a way of life for many of them and I can’t blame them.

I think Yahoo should have let the Groups know what was coming and why. Just a warning would have made the whole neo thing easier to swallow, even though the members may not have liked it.

As a footnote, I have heard from a few members that actually like neo. As for me I will wait and see what eventually happens.

Martha

The Magic Word Is Free

Nothing seems to grab folk’s attention like the word ‘free’.

‘Buy one, get one free’.  It’s everywhere. Ads on TV simply shout it in all those ads about products that seem to be about making our lives so much easier. It starts with ‘But wait’ and then the pitch to buy one and get another one free (except for shipping and handling).  The fine print will bump up the free product to make the total quite pricey, but folks just buy into the word ‘free’.

Then there is the phrase ‘Free download’ for a software program. Granted, some free downloads work as promised, but those are few and getting fewer all the time.

With a few exceptions all of those promised ‘free’ programs come with stuff users probably don’t want, like the infamous Ask toolbar. This little ‘gem’ will change your home page, take over your search and generally frustrate you no end.

The problem is nothing is really free in the long run. The free programs that don’t push unwanted stuff on your computer may be free now, but they hope you will buy the pro version and/or at least donate to their cause. Some of these may contain ‘nagware’ Then there are the sneaky free downloads that aren’t even what you wanted in the first place. The How-To Geek has a great page about all of this stuff. I wrote about the sneaky install on Martha’s Web too.

The point I am trying to make though, is the word ‘free’ is what grabs people’s attention and may cause unintended consequences. If you have to buy something before you get that ‘free’ thing, it isn’t free. If you have to provide personal information to get something, it isn’t free.

Longtime Internet users got spoiled with free stuff, but those days are getting shorter and shorter and the ‘free stuff’ is not really free any more.

Got a Will?

It’s a fact of the modern day world, if you own anything of value, you need a will.

This is necessary to make sure your wishes are granted if you want your assets distributed in the manner of your choosing.  I suspect you already know that and have made sure you have a will and named who is to get what after your demise.

But what about your online stuff? What should be done about all that cyber stuff that requires usernames, passwords and the like?  Do you want it all to go on forever?

What about your online business? What if someone buys something and it never gets to the buyer? What then? Would that leave a mess for your heirs to clean up? They already have enough to deal with without that!

What if some hacker hacks your email after you die and sends spam forever to your family and friends you left behind?

Do you want your Facebook account to just site there unused for perpetuity?

All of those accounts like PayPal, other online banking accounts, investment accounts and the list goes on and on, need user names and passwords. Sure eventually they may get cleared up, but it sure would be easier if someone you trust had all of those web addresses, user names and passwords.

Want to know how to make it all easier for those you leave behind?

Setup a password keeper! A really good password keeper can handle all that for you and all your designated online heir has to do is log on to your password keeper and take care of the cyber stuff in the way you want it done.

Of course you have to make sure your designated online heir has the current password for that password keeper, but keeping up with just one login and password is a whole lot better than trying to keep up with all your cyber stuff.

Another advantage of that password keeper works for you! Most will generate really good passwords and keep them safe so you don’t have to remember them all and can make sure you are not using something stupid like ‘password’ or your dog’s name, or using the same password for all your accounts. I’m sure you don’t do that, do you?

If you want a really great password keeper, I suggest LastPass, which is free for pcs and only one dollar a month for phones. The best thing about LastPass, besides being free, you are the only one who knows the password. If you forget it, you will just have to start over again as, LastPass doesn’t have a record of your password. Since I don’t trust the Cloud, this is a huge factor for me!

But there are other password keepers, here is a list of some you can try. The best Password Managers.   Notice LastPass has a five star rating!

So don’t leave your heirs in the lurch about your cyber life, make sure they can take care of your online assets as well as the physical stuff you leave behind.

Stupidity Knows No Bounds

Somewhere, I don’t remember where, I read the Internet is making us stupid.

I don’t think that is true, but it does seem to bring out the stupid remarks at times and I have come to believe that it certainly shows that some folks are really gullible and yes, some are patently stupid about some things.

The gullible category are those folks that don’t stop to think about what they read. These are the folks that thought “Wow!” when they read about the Chinese Money Bags. and dutifully forwarded it to a bunch of folks and may have posted it in Facebook. I don’t think these folks are stupid, but if they really believe this, they are certainly gullible.

The money bag hoax is only one of many that keep re-appearing. There are the hoax emails that claim if you forward the email to oh so many friends, you will get money from Microsoft, or some other entity, for every time the email is forwarded. Really folks? There is absolutely no way to track how many times an email is forwarded, but even if there was a way, it’s highly unlikely anyone would pay anyone any money.

There are the emails purporting to be written by some famous person, like Bill Cosby. and a lot of other folks.

Then there are the nasty emails denigrating a very prominent politician. I won’t go into that , but I am sure you know what I mean. I think that comes into the category ‘If you repeat something often enough, you start to believe it.’

I once heard someone say “It must be true, I read it in the newspaper.  They couldn’t print it if it wasn’t true!” I am afraid this is the attitude of a lot of folks when it comes to the Internet!

For some really funny stuff about stupid people, read some of the things on this site, Not Always Right.  While I am not sure all of the things written about folks here are entirely true, I am beginning to think it’s entirely possible!

My father once said “Don’t believe everything you hear and don’t believe half of what you think you see”. He was certainly right!

Martha

Blog Spammers

If you have a blog, you get comment spammers.  It just happens and all you can do is periodically clean it out.

Most WordPress blogs use Akismet to control comment spam.  Akismet is free for personal use and is really great for keeping comment and track-back spam at bay.

I sometimes look at the spam comments. They all are pretty much the same. Some examples are as follows:

Dear Webmaster! Is your website not getting enough TRAFFIC? If you want to flood your website with visitors and skyrocket your income check out this brandnew traffic course –> http://bit.ly/spammy site.

Hey there, it’s Mel Spammer. As i read through your blog I discovered that you are really dedicated and provide useful information, so I checked your website at alexa.com and found out that you are not receiving very much traffic. If you want to take your Business to the next level by increasing traffic, visitors and therefore your potential income you should check out this online course for traffic generating –> http://bit.ly/spammy site If you have any questions you can send me an email, have a nice day!

The same spam comments, over and over. Of course these comments are sent out using a ‘bot’, but you would think they would change them up a bit.

But no, they just keep on and on.  Fortunately there is an option to just empty the spam folder in WordPress.

Martha

Tell Me It Isn't True!

"Facebook Asking Some Users To Upload Government Issued IDs"

Are they nuts? Who is going to be stupid enough to give anyone on the Internet this kind of documentation?

Not me, no way, ever, never!

Right now it's supposedly a test only.  But with Facebook's history of privacy issues, well.......

Martha

 

Google Spies On Me

Well by now almost everyone who keeps up with what's happening on the Internet, knows that Google has updated it's privacy policy and Google is tracking you everywhere.

We shouldn't be surprised.  I decided to fight back.  I use Firefox as my default web browser and I installed a free add-on called 'Do Not Track Plus'.

It worked great, for awhile.

The first symptom of a problem was difficulty logging in to some sites like Barnes and Noble. After I eventually got logged in, then when I clicked the Buy now button for a product, nothing would happen.  Nothing! Even if I changed to another browser!

Today I have been checking my website for valid links. I use a Firefox extension called LinkExtend to check for valid links as I have so many links throughout the site. LinkExtend kept hanging and I had to stop the process.  I then noticed that every time the link checking stopped, it was for a Google site!

So I disabled the 'Do Not Track Plus' and everything is working just fine.  It could be just a problem with the add-in causing the proble and it probably is, but this seems pretty odd to me and just maybe Google is fighting back in some way.  Google is pretty sneaky, they even managed to do some nefarious bit with Safari.

So I will get even, Google! I just won't use your products much any more and those I do use will be while not signed in as I have been told this is when they track folks.

I know other services track me, but Google is just going too far! I guess they are trying to be like Facebook!

Martha

 

A Hoax Gets Started

A hoax can get started with maybe a grain of truth.

I recently received an email about a dog leading so many folks to safety during the attack of 9/11. It was very well done, with a picture of the heroic dog included. The Hoax.

It was a stirring story, except it wasn't true. I usually check to see if stories are really true, but since this wasn't of the murdering madmen variety or any one of the type I usually get, I didn't check it out.  When someone brought my attention to the fact that it was a hoax, it burned me up.  There were clues in the original email that if I had checked, I would have known something was not kosher.

The email said the dog led some of those folks from the 112nd floor.  But how many people actually know that each tower had 110 floors? I didn't!

I should have known that if this story was really true, it would surely have been televised at least once!

Now I wonder if this hoax was based on another story (which may or may not be true) about a guide dog on 9/11. Guide Dog Led Owner Down Stairs on 9/11

The reference to this story (Excerpted from Ventura County Star, April 25, 2003) does not seem to be availble.  At least I didn't find it.

So maybe, since this article is to 'persuade people to raise guide puppies', the elaborate hoax about Daisy may have been done in order to get more people to raise guide puppies.  Unfortunately in this cas the untruth may have had the effect of making folks mad instead of getting the attention the hoaxer wanted.

Of course there is always the possiblility that someone just wants to 'be funny' and see how far the hoax will spread.

Martha

Sony's Got the Blues

I am wondering if Sony has managed to really tick off someone.  Either that or maybe they need to shell out some $$$ for really good security.

Just read the log of Sony's problems on this site, Sony's hacking woes mount after PSN breach.

Maybe North Korean students are practicing?  North Korea’s Overseas Cyber Warrior Training.

Wouldn't want to be a Sony IT person right now.

Martha

I Didn't Post That!

Several times I have seen posts on Facebook from folks who say "I Didn't Post That, please ignore it".

'That' is something malicious and I am wondering how 'that' managed to get posted from the user's account!

One thing could be the user has a weak password for Facebook.  But the users that posted "I didn't post that" are fairly computer savvy and should have used good passwords.

Now we are finding out that third party apps (like Farmville) are probably the culprits although they are probably not aware of the security issue.

Net-Security explains.

Egads, what next Facebook?

Martha

Can't Find Google

Some time back I wrote a post about 'Firefox cannot find the server'.

I had to go back to Firefox as it just has too much going for it the other browsers don't.  But I do use Opera and Chrome, rarely Internet Explorer (that ActiveX thing is still there) and rarely still, Safari.

Imagine my surprise when Google Chrome couldn't find Google!



Martha