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Browser Tools Aim to Warn Surfers of Spyware, Spam
Carl Bialik from WSJ writes "New Web tools aim to protect surfers by flagging sites that are associated with viruses, spam or other scourges, but they sometimes disagree over whether a site is safe. From the article: 'Scandoo's service sometimes misses the mark in its efforts to flag adult content. On a recent day, it gave a green rating to the web site for Maxim Magazine's U.K. division, even though it contains nudity. It gave a red rating to the magazine's U.S. site, which contains no nudity. After an inquiry from the Online Journal, [executive Dan] Nadir said Scandoo decided to change the rating, reclassifying the U.K. site as red by default. "It was clear that it was misclassified, so we classified it correctly," Mr. Nadir said. A spokesman for Maxim Online said the discrepancy showed Scandoo's technology is "clearly broken."'"
No, it may have something to do with what is acceptable regarding nudity in Europe vs the US. Bare breasts is not apparently a big deal with our friends across the pond, but over here, it's cause to bring out the torches and pitchforks. Besides, last I saw Maxim (the US version) it contained no real nudity at all.
I tried every decent and legal way I could think of to resolve the issue w/the business before I rented the chicken suit
The problem with programs like this is that they simply can't catch everything. This in itself isn't bad until you have users which rely on them. Once users rely on these tools, they let their guard down, and they immediately trust anything that the tool says is okay instead of remaining suspicious.
These are great tools, but they should add to personal judgement rather than replace it.
If I have been able to see further than others, it is because I bought a pair of binoculars.