Slashdot Mirror
The Average PC is Infested with Spyware
WoodenRobot writes "This article claims that Earthlink have discovered that the average user's PC has 28 spyware programs on it. More details can be found on Earthlink's spyware auditing page." Compare to a university study. The FTC is hosting a Spyware Workshop.
While most spyware is adware-related and relatively benign, it's disturbing that over 300,000 of the more serious system monitors and Trojans were uncovered
I don't think most adware is benign since it eats into available RAM. Some adware also affects application performance, or, worse yet, prevents applications from running. Anyway, I am, again, preaching to the choir.....
Happy Trails!
Erick
http://www.busyweather.com/
Ask anybody who services PCs...there's not a machine around that isn't riddled with the stuff, but making a headline out of it is like shrieking about the existence of viruses.
Ditch IE for Firefox. I just did 2 clients' computers today (running slow, yadayada) and guess what? One had 18 spyware trojans installed, the other had 64 (as well as a couple of viruses). Firefox (any Gecko-based browser) is not vulnerable to the crap that IE is. I always tell my clients to not use IE anymore. When they listen, they always have a better overall experience.
bash: rtfm: command not found
I would mod you down if I had the points, not because you disagree, but because you are a dick about it. If the information is wrong, you should be pointing the finger at BBC news, which the headline here is entirely consistant with. Yes, the Arstechnica article has a good point that the article is perhaps wrong, but that is hardly the fault of the slashdot editor. I nice "well, arstechnica has evidence that casts doubt on the validity of this article" would have served the purpose just as well, and you would not looked like an ass doing it. And posting a link would have been nice too like Link would have been nice too.
And the same thing would probably be true if people took the same attitude toward keeping their computer running that they do toward keeping their car running. People accept that cars are complicated and require routine service. They understand that if they're not competent to do the service themselves that it makes sense to pay a professional to do it for them. They're willing to plunk down some serious coin to get the thing fixed if/when it breaks.
The problem is that many, if not most, people don't take the same attitude toward computers. They're encouraged to believe that computers are so easy to use that anyone can use and maintain one with little or no training. When problems do come up, they tend to try to solve them by asking a friend who is supposed to know this stuff what to do rather than spending money on a professional. Combine that attitude with deliberate attacks against computers by things like worms and spyware, and it should be no surprise that the average car is much better maintained than the average computer.
There's no point in questioning authority if you aren't going to listen to the answers.
The only reason I know how to care for my car is because it cost $15,000. The car I drove in college cost was a 15 year old POS I got for a couple hundred bucks so I could get groceries once a week, and I never changed the oil once. I drove on bald, half flat tires for a long time (I never went on the freeway, or over 45, so I didn't really care), and I let the radiator fluid (tap water) get really low on several occasions because of a slow leak.
I didn't care. That car did what I needed it to do for as long as I needed to do it before I could afford a better one. In other words, it was exactly like a computer to most people.
It's nothing but crumpled porno and Ayn Rand.