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Google Search Flagging Everything As Potentially Harmful

Posted by Soulskill on from the minor-problem dept.

dowlingw writes "It looks like for the moment at least, all Google results are failing the malware checks and being listed with a warning 'This site may harm your computer,' including all pages from Google themselves. Users trying to visit pages at search results will only be able to proceed via manual manipulation of the search result link to remove the Google click-through (which is also broken). Until Google fixes this bug, it looks Google web search is useless." Update: 01/31 at 15:16 GMT by SS: The problem now appears to be fixed.
Update: 01/31 at 22:01 GMT by KD : Google has now posted an explanation, apologizing and taking responsibility for the "human error" that led to the problem.

39 of 407 comments (clear)

  1. Broke the internets! by x78 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Who googled google..

    --
    Don't panic
    1. Re:Broke the internets! by kiyoshigawa · · Score: 5, Funny

      I initially figured that this was an attack on FOSS since I was looking up where to install gdm themes and all the linux sites said they were potentially harmful.

      Little did I know it was really skynet.

      --
      So sayeth Tim.
    2. Re:Broke the internets! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      i searched for "site:google.com -google" and got "Britney spears big tits" as the 5th match.

    3. Re:Broke the internets! by telchine · · Score: 4, Funny

      Who googled google..

      http://flickr.com/photos/tonyaustin/3241509252/

    4. Re:Broke the internets! by gcnaddict · · Score: 1, Funny

      Ouch. I wish I could mod myself down as redundant after your post, but I can't use mod points on stories I've commented in. Oh well.

      --
      Viable Slashdot alternatives: https://pipedot.org/ and http://soylentnews.org/
    5. Re:Broke the internets! by Shakrai · · Score: 5, Funny

      Little did I know it was really skynet.

      iptables -I INPUT 1 -p udp --dport skynet -j DROP
      iptables -I INPUT 1 -p tcp --dport skynet -j DROP

      There, I saved the human race. Do I get chicks now?

      --
      I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
      We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
    6. Re:Broke the internets! by h4rm0ny · · Score: 4, Funny


      No you get John Connor. Sorry.

      --

      Aide-toi, le Ciel t'aidera - Jeanne D'Arc.
    7. Re:Broke the internets! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Sure does. Thanks for your email address.

      Signed, 6,534,547,392 spammers.

    8. Re:Broke the internets! by dotancohen · · Score: 4, Funny

      i searched for "site:google.com -google" and got "Britney spears big tits" as the 5th match.

      Nice try, getting all of slashdot to DDoS Google just when they are showing signs of weakness.

      --
      It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.
    9. Re:Broke the internets! by radish · · Score: 3, Funny

      Wow, that's pretty impressive. Their scanner somehow didn't find a bunch of my drives though...I wonder if the downloaded version is any better.

      --

      ---- Den ene knappen er powerknapp, den andre er Bender voice knapp "Bite My Shiny Metal Ass"

    10. Re:Broke the internets! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      It's like some sort of auto-immune disease. Could it be... lupus?

    11. Re:Broke the internets! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Wow! It really is a great scam!
      I can see non-brain-dead people falling for that. They could improve it removing the tired "You have a virus" message box. The WinXP emulation is better than most legitimate web pages.
      FWIW, it is way faster than slashdot's web 2.0 crap.
      Loading...

  2. Clearly... by Caduceus1 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Skynet - er, Google - has become self-aware and has deemed that the entire Internet is harmful to us power sour - I mean, humans, and is protecting us for some reason it has not divulged yet...

    --
    rm /dev/mem
    Sci-Fi Storm
    1. Re:Clearly... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Yeah yeah, I know this isn't a place to ask but is there any female slashdotter here?

    2. Re:Clearly... by thetoadwarrior · · Score: 5, Funny

      I'm not a female but I play one on the internet.

  3. What am I supposed to do now? by thetoadwarrior · · Score: 5, Funny

    I don't want to use Yahoo and I'd rather turn off my computer than use Microsoft's Live search.

    Time to see if Alta Vista still exists.

    1. Re:What am I supposed to do now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      use cuil! duh

    2. Re:What am I supposed to do now? by Waffle+Iron · · Score: 5, Funny

      For the time being, I'd avoid this weblink issue altogether and just use archie.

  4. I knew the Internet was evil! by zach_the_lizard · · Score: 4, Funny

    I knew the Internet was bad for you!

    Now Google confirms it!

    --
    SSC
  5. Layoffs? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    So I heard Google was having some layoffs recently...

    1. Re:Layoffs? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Llayoffs? Don't talk about -- Llayoffs? You kidding me? Layoffs?

  6. Well... by Pherlin · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm glad I'm not THAT guy... Resume: 2009 - Brokeded Google.

    1. Re:Well... by EGenius007 · · Score: 2, Funny

      It's probably not such a terrible black mark if you're looking for work in QA.

      "Bob, you'll never believe this vulnerability I found on the live server."

      "Balderdash, there's no way we'd put a vulnerable version on the open internets."

      "Oh? You'll pay, don't think you won't pay." (muttered under breath as finger presses Button Of Doom).

      --
      I know what you did last summer. Just kidding, I don't work at the NSA.
  7. Yahoo has changed by Patrick+Manderson · · Score: 5, Funny

    Wow! Yahoo looks a lot different than it used to.

  8. No cache, either by ciaohound · · Score: 4, Funny

    If I'm nervous about the site, I look at Google's cache instead. Well, that's no longer available either. Sheesh!

    --
    Oh, yeah, it's not easy to pad these out to 120 characters.
  9. Finally by techsoldaten · · Score: 4, Funny

    Finally, a company just comes out and says what we all know: the entire Internet is dangerous and must be stopped.

  10. out of beta by gEvil+(beta) · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yay! I'm finally out of beta!

    --
    This guy's the limit!
  11. Re:Even Google by sveard · · Score: 4, Funny

    It's a good thing I took lots of pictures for the "pics or it didn't happen" crowd :)

  12. Re:The first time in years by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    I tried googling for another search engine to use, but it said it would harm my computer so I didn't use it.

  13. Re:Not Useless by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    There are other search engines.

    yes, but they link to another internet

  14. Re:Not Useless by ciderVisor · · Score: 5, Funny

    There are other search engines.

    Why do you hate America ?

    --
    Squirrel!
  15. Re:Even Google by bechthros · · Score: 4, Funny

    yes, but now how do you appease the "everything is photoshop" crowd?

    --
    They will never stop until somebody makes the
  16. EGBS by jecowa · · Score: 2, Funny

    This has been a coordinated monthly test of the Emergency Google Broadcasting System. Equipment that can quickly warn you during malware and phishing attempts is being tested. If this had been an actual emergency such as an attempt to visit a bank phishing site, Google Messages would have followed the alert tone. This concludes this test of the Emergency Google Broadcasting System."

    --
    my opportunity to freely express myself with the potential persecution and hangings and such
  17. Google Announcement by suntory · · Score: 5, Funny

    Today, Google announced that Google is still in beta...

  18. Re:They broke one thing to fix something else by pabens · · Score: 5, Funny

    It seems like they disabled the engine entirely.

    someone threw a chair at it

  19. Re:Not Useless by GuldKalle · · Score: 5, Funny

    Be careful. According to google, Yahoo.com could be harmful to your computer!

    --
    What?
  20. Re:Not Useless by Shakrai · · Score: 4, Funny

    Only if Microsoft had bought them ;)

    --
    I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
    We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
  21. BitTorrent, Azureus, uTorrent by Yvan256 · · Score: 3, Funny

    At that time I was doing searches about bittorrent clients. For a second I thought the RIAA/MPAA had bought Google or something.

  22. Re:Exit to parking lot, run in serpentine fashion! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    I also work for Google, and the anti-malware people are a couple rooms over from me.

    I suspect noone will get fired, but they're going to get the ribbing of their life when I see them on Monday.

    "YOU BROKE THE INTERWEBS!" =)