Slashdot Mirror
Millions Continue To Click On Spam
An anonymous reader writes "Even though over 80% of email users are aware of the existence of bots, tens of millions respond to spam in ways that could leave them vulnerable to a malware infection, according to a Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG) survey. In the survey, half of users said they had opened spam, clicked on a link in spam, opened a spam attachment, replied or forwarded it — activities that leave consumers susceptible to fraud, phishing, identity theft, and infection. While most consumers said they were aware of the existence of bots, only one-third believed they were vulnerable to an infection."
FIRST POST!!
which is totally what she said
And then they call the IT Dept. claiming that they did nothing..It's just started acting weird..all by itself.. I was just reading this cute mail I got about penises and viagra!
there will be no end of this, not until we let morons use computers
I'm really not sure what to say to this...
Users are ignorant to computers. Users have always been ignorant. We can do whatever we can to protect them, either through education, security, antivirus, and anti-malware, but the problem is they aren't geeky tech-people that keep us and like this stuff enough to learn it.
How about we just have a TV show or a movie they want to watch, but teaches them? We could make it a romantic comedy for the ladies or a war movie for the guys, but insert in proper computer use and warnings about spam, viruses, phishing, fraud, etc. We need some kind of mass media to actually teach the masses, and it needs to be a regular interval to keep up with the problems.
Millions of computer users are idiots.
"No, Mr. End User...I expect you to DIE."
Living With a Nerd
Congratulations!!!
Your name has been picked. You have just won millions of dollars worth of software. You are also granted the permission to give this software to all of your friends and family.
Click on this link to claim your prize...
CLICK HERE TO GET FREE SOFTWARE!
They're probably the users who believe that computers run off magic. For any above-absolute-beginner, common sense should kick in naturally.
This goes to show the level of incompetence, and talking from experience too:
Me: "Okay you're logged into the system?" ...(proceed a barrage of troubleshooting)...
Cust: "Uh-yes"
Me: Click on the Reports menu item"
Cust: (silence) I don't see it.
Me: "Any errors pop up recently?"
Me: "What DO you see?"
Cust: "Just a white page with an image, that says 'Google'"
From TF pdf, under methodology
"Survey participants are all members of Ipsos' opt-in consumer panels in each of the six markets and were invited to participate via email".
So, people who respond to spam also respond to bullshit surveys via email.
Who'd a thunk it ?
Anyone quoted by a reporter knows how little they understand
Don't believe what you read is the truth.
How about some crusaders who mount spam campaigns that, when clicked, scare the holy living hell out of the recipient? Display your geo-location info and a big flashing progress meter that says, "withdrawing funds from your bank account...55%...100%...done" and then a dialog box pops up and says, "Why'd you click on a spam link, sucker? I'll be enjoying your money while I vacation in the Cayman Islands!" Of course no money would be stolen but it would at least give a few idiots the scare of their lives and get them to stop clicking on spam.
Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
In defense of your mother, I would have had no idea what to do if you told me to look at the start bar. Task bar, notification area, system tray, I'd have understood any of those, but "start bar" is completely new to me.
apparently they allready are
Yes we can. Advertise cyanide capsules as v1agra and sell them via spam. Problem solved.
I am TheRaven on Soylent News