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Google To Nix All Tech Support Provider Ads (itnews.com.au)
Google will restrict advertisements placed by third-party technical support providers, in an effort to stem a rising tide of abuse and fraud by scammers who offer to fix non-existent problems on consumers' computers. Report says: The restriction for tech support ads comes after Google collaborated with law enforcement and government agencies to address abuse in the area, the company's director of public policy David Graff wrote. All ads for technical support will be restricted worldwide, even for legitimate providers, Graff said. Google's banned such ads because the company finds it increasingly difficult to tell scammers from legitimate providers, as the fraudulent activity happens away from the company's platform.
So they're blocking Windows and Mac support ads while keeping the "run to the cloud" cloud-migration partner ads? Seems like good business sense...
Here's hoping they nix the "You need updated 32/64-bit Windows Drivers" messages that keep overlaying YouTube videos, too. I don't even own a Windows computer.
I call bullshit.
With APK"s Host File Engine!
Bazinga!
They are called apps now. If all language is a virus, so is all source code and your computer is infested beyond repair.
the phone calls from "Mictosoft Tech Support" on my cell phone,
I don't have anything other than some old Xbox running old versions of XBMC from Microsoft in my house.
The only entertainment I get is asking them, when they call, if it's Monsoon season yet.
Is this how Big Tech solves insoluble problems, by tossing the whole bathtub out the second story window and then when challenged about it asking, "what problem?"
They'll "Fix" this problem.
Then either offer a special verified IT support program, which unfortunately has some overhead and will cost more to place such an ad (Premium Premium ads) :P
or you'll hear that google is offering to resolve IT problems and has their own outsourced IT company they advertise
"Language is a virus from outer space." William S. Burroughs.
Laurie Anderson's take on it.
I don't know about you, but my grandmother can't fix her own computer to save her own life. She NEEDS a tech support company. Are we really going to let some dipshit apples spoil the whole bunch for a giant swath of the public who NEEDS this kind of shit to even make Excel add the total of a column for them? We shouldn't. We should just tell people what to look for in a scammer. IE someone who calls you first about problems with your computer you didn't know you had. Also, someone claiming to be from 'Windows technical support' or anyone claiming to know shit about your computer, at all, preemptively. Just say no! teach anyone who owns a computer that, and you've instantly made it less profitable to be a scammer, and also potentially created tens of thousands of more hilarious youtube videos of people leading scammers on until they meet their inevitably obnoxious conclusion that you aren't falling for it. Sell Ads on THAT.
Speak for yourself.
If they purport to have AI sufficiently intelligent to drive cars, can't it be use to discern scams? Any time Google (or any company which purports "to almost" have working scalable AI) complains that it can't make a simple decision rapidly and it's the kind of decision that millions of people make every day, it should give them and everyone else a pause.
Any guest worker system is indistinguishable from indentured servitude.
I had an experience a few months ago where I typed in "Netgear support" and the first hit I got was an ad for some firm that claimed it could fix routers. At the time, it was not clear that it wasn't Netgear support, and they claimed to be Netgear, both in the ad and on the phone. It was only until they asked for $100, for support on a brand new router, that I realized they weren't. I immediately terminated the call.
They called back, again claiming they were "Netgear" (I had given them a callback number). I was rather upset that Google provided their ad result as the first item for Netgear. They were running a scam. I eventually got to real Netgear support, and they helped me with my problem.
"the company finds it increasingly difficult to tell scammers from legitimate providers"
A very widespread problem in many areas besides tech support, e.g., banking/financial services.
Wells Fargo for example. Legitimate business or scammer?
APK Hosts File Engine 2.0++ 64-bit for Linux & BSD h t t p : / / a p k . i t - m a t e . c o . u k / A P K H o s t s F i l e E n g i n e F o r L i n u x . z i p
Yields more security/speed/reliability/anonymity vs. any 1 solution (99% of threats use hostnames vs. IP address most firewalls use) more efficiently/FASTER + NATIVELY 4 less!
Vs. "Bolt on 'MoAr' illogic-logic" slowing you hosts speed u up 2 ways: Adblocks + Hardcode fav. sites u spend most time @ vs. competition loaded w/ security bugs (DNS/AntiVir) + overheads slowing u (messagepass 'souled-out' to advertisers easily detected & blocked addons + firewall filtering drivers) & their complexity leads to exploitation!
* ONLY 1 of its kind in GUI 4 Linux/BSD!
(Better vs. Windows model in speed/efficiency/merge)
APK
P.S.=> Protects vs. script trackers/ads/DNS request tracking + redirect poisoned or downed DNS/botnets/malware downloads/malcript/email malicious payloads... apk
Your software is just fine - well written, functional... I'm going to continue using the Host File Engine by mmell February 17, 2017
Your premise that hostfiles are a good way to deal with advertising and malvertising is quite valid - by JazzLad April 20, 2016
his hosts program is actually pretty good by xenotransplant August 10 2015
his hosts tool is actually useful for those cases in which one does indeed want to locally block stuff outright while consuming minimum system resources by alexgieg September 25 2015
I like your host file system by Karmashock September 09 2015
that APK guy, I use his host file by rogoshen1 Tuesday March 03, 2015
I personally use a HOSTS file blocker produced from a genius called APK by 110010001000 October 27 2017
* Linux model = faster/more efficient
APK
P.S.=> APK Hosts File Engine 9.0++ SR-1 32/64-bit for Windows https://www.google.comsearch?s...
That's why nobody uses Chrome on Android.
Caniuse.com's usage table disagrees with that claim.
Chrome for Android: 32.65%
Firefox for Android: 0.18%
Nor is Firefox beating other mobile browsers.
Safari for iOS (11.2 and 11.4): 8.55%
Opera Mini (more remote desktop than browser): 2.29%
IE Mobile (10, 11, and Edge): 0.22%
Back when I co-owned an IT service business our most prominent calls were residential calls resolving issues created by Google enabling scammers to bilk elderly people out of money who were searching for support for D-Link support, Microsoft support, Apple support, etc., etc.. You name it, there's a fake support site for it.
Every few months I would feedback Google's scam ads and they never did anything about them. Why? Because Googling has happily and knowingly enabling scam artists.
We had one senior on a fixed income that was "Paying Microsoft" $500 a month because she used Google to find them to help her with an email problem and they alleged she needed to pay them to keep her computer safe from viruses. Sickening. I don't know why Google wasn't hanged for this behaviour ages ago, the first time they said they were going to fix this problem. I'm sure I commented on a number of these same articles in the past on Slashdot.
Should help Chromebook sales. Google never does anything without a way to make money, eventually.
Chromebook support can be reduced to "run a powerwash. That will be $50" for home users. School and business is a little harder, but not much.
Great! Now they should also remove ads for all of the other categories experiencing an influx of scammers... which are like... everything under the sun!
Want a depressing example? Look up "florist scam google maps". They are doing nothing about it.
So, tech support providers have become like mechanics. They fix stuff that isn't broken, and break stuff to fix it later.
(T>t && O(n)--) == sqrt(666)
More lies from Alexander Peter Kowalski
Like how he claims the Chinese copied him but can't produce any evidence.
How about when he states that hosts does port filtering but again can't backup his statement which was shown to be false.
There is also his list of "experts" who support him but it turns out they don't say what he is claiming.
This also ignores his out of context quotes he uses to lie by omission.
The problem with APK is that his entire reputation is built upon the lie he told years ago that hosts is an effective security solution. It has been exposed numerous times as being a lie and when exposed APK fails to argue logically and instead will try to deflect criticism, change the subject, move the goal posts, return to a previously disproven statement, demand you prove you did better than his file concatenator, or just call people names. He will continue to lie by stating that he won or "dusted" you while failing to refute anything you said, will never provide real evidence, and generally try to dodge the issue.
Face it APK is one of the most detested individuals here for good reason. When ever his poor behavior, awful logic, over statements, and horrendous writing are called out he has a fit and has done so for years across the internet. He is a spammer, and is an abusive insecure little man who is washed up and never amounted to anything. Until he produces actual verifiable facts supporting his case nothing he says should be taken seriously.
See subject & 2 questions he won't answer: 1.) Do hosts stop threats served by hostname (the way threats are done most) by blocking them? Yes. 2.) Do hosts speed you up 2 ways in adblocking (preventing more infection/tracking/slowdown) & via hardcoded favorite sites resolving faster + protecting vs. dns down or redirect poisoned? Yes.
My hosts program's the only 1 that does the latter @ TOP of hosts cached in RAM (for best performance) & only 1 of its kind on Linux/BSD in easy to use flexible configuration GUI form.
(I also did that latter part LONG before the Chinese & 1st http://theregister.co.uk/2017/... )
APK
P.S.-> Have you done work that's that effective doing more for less faster in kernelmode speed (cpu priority) w/ less complexity for exploit + excess overheads vs. solutions KNOWN to be security-issue riddled (like addons (souled-out to NOT work by default OR easily detected & blocked that are BYPASSABLE & EXPLOITABLE), DNS & Antivirus)? No... apk
"classic Windows hosts trick to block the Coinhive or Crypto-Loot domains" - https://www.bleepingcomputer.comnews/security/a-new-player-joins-coinhive-on-the-browser-cryptojacking-scene/ - BLEEPING COMPUTER
SANS ("A related approach to the DNS issue is to create a hosts file on each system that sends requests for spyware to some place else. Both Ramu and an anonymous reader have suggested this" hosts by myself & RAMU right @ START of "malware explosion" mid 2005 on) https://isc.sans.edu/forums/di...
Aryeh Goretsky/ESET/NOD32: hosts = good security http://it.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=7442373&cid=49747129/
ZD NET http://www.zdnet.comarticle/how-to-use-a-hosts-file-to-improve-your-internet-experience/ "Hosts files really shine by letting you block ads, spyware sites, malware sites, & tracking sites"
Steve Gibson on hosts https://www.grc.comsn/sn-045.htm/
Oliver Day (SYMANTEC/SECURITYFOCUS) http://www.securityfocus.comcolumnists/491/
APK
"It's working: Neville... it's working!" See subject & results from THIS month alone https://it.slashdot.org/commen... & https://it.slashdot.org/commen... + https://it.slashdot.org/commen... + https://it.slashdot.org/commen... that's only recently while I've been on Linux (few months now only) & 100's of times vs. MANY other botnets/malwares etc. in the past circa 2006-early 2018 while I was on Windows: There's BULLSHIT & doing nothing pessimsm & then? There's CONCRETE VISIBLE UNDENIABLE REALITY (see those links as proof).
P.S.=> 3 things show I do it right:
1st = User praise my hosts engine https://tech.slashdot.org/comm...
2nd "ATTACKS" I GET (from UNIDENTIFIABLE ac as Elon Musk got https://tech.slashdot.org/stor... )
3rd BEING IMITATED = "Imitation = sincerest form of flattery" https://linux.slashdot.org/com... ... apk
Arstechnica = losers who stalked me (as you do now anonymously unidentifiably) to NTCompatible.com & Windows IT Pro magazine forums to their public dismay in Jeremy Reimer & Jay Little + Jarrett DeAngelis (who posts here on /. until I drove his ass off too) when their websites were REMOVED by their hosting providers in Shaw Canada & CrystalTech (for both email harassing me caught on a tracking ticket + stalking me & posting lies about me on them AFTER I destroyed them both PUBLICLY @ Windows IT Pro on Exchange Servers memory being freed UNHALTING them (which tells you Exchange is HEAVILY POINTER ORIENTED linked list driven, which leads to memory fragmentation that CAN halt a serverware)).
Jay Little the "self-proclaimed 'EXCHANGE EXPERT'" HAD TO CONCEDE IT from MICROSOFT'S OWN DOCUMENTATION proving it FOR me there (where they as usual stalked me AS YOU ARE NOW)
Thor SCHMUCK?
Ask him WHY his false accusation of an old ware of mine was 1st taken down to NO threat & CA sold off the SHITTY antivir he sold (as a paid pawn of theirs) & they are GONE, done. dead... lol!
Lookup "CA Accounting Scandal" on Google - scumbags & THEIR BIRDS OF A FEATHER just go down vs. me everytime!
APK
P.S.=> You FAIL as you are caught in YOUR LIES HYPOCRITE who HIDES from me via your UNIDENTIFIABLE anonymous posts punk... apk
DMCA is a USA thing
And article 6 of the Copyright Directive 2001 is an analogous EU thing.