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Computer: Some Internet Myths and Premises

Posted by Bruce Simmons on February 02, 2009 I came across an article that touches on some popular perspectives that they either diss or support. Here are a few items of interest:

If you type a URL into your browser, you're safe from phishing attacks.

There's still the possibilities of "pharming" or "domain name poisoning" attacks. These two processes intercept legitimate URLs and redirect the web requests to bogus sites.

Google finds everything on the Web, and once it has your information, it can't be removed.

Google will only find things on the web, if other sources link to it. This is a form of validation in their search engine code.

Ya know what I say? If you don't want information found, then don't put it on the Web. Or password protect the web page the information is on!

You're fully protected when you buy something on eBay.

There are some protective measures when you use PayPal that soothe myself, but nothing is fool proof in the long run, depending on your spending practices.

If you pay via some other means, like personal checks, money orders or wire transfers, the ball is entirely in your court of daring trust. Especially with nonphysical items like software or electronic documents.

Rechargeable batteries are more cost effective than disposable ones.

The most cost effective use of rechargeable batteries depends upon the type of battery you choose and how often you use your gadgets.

For instance, daily bicycle riders who end up using their headlights every day, rechargeable batteries are the way to go. Rechargeable batteries for a flashlight you use once in a blue moon is a different story.

'Unlimited' 3G broadband access really is unlimited.

When service providers tout unlimited high-speed data plans, you rarely have free rein over what you can do with that bandwidth and the words used could sometimes be considered a liberal use of terms or a product available that maybe you can't afford.

In some cases, some carriers have skeletons in their unlimited closets.

One carrier advertised"unlimited" broadband that really wasn't. Although EVDO subscribers could surf the Web and send and receive e-mail, the terms of service forbade them from uploading or downloading files, viewing Webcams, or using Voice over IP services. The company also placed an undisclosed 5GB cap on each account.

Airport X-ray machines can damage or erase your digital camera's memory card.

The Transportation Security Administration puts it succinctly: "Our screening equipment will not affect digital cameras and electronic image storage cards." As some independent testing may also support.

Here's my favorite that disses those stupid Mac ads that seem to push the idea that macs are above all the issues that windows pc's have:

Macs are safe from malware attacks

Mac users had their misguide perceptions tested when a security researcher took home a $10,000 prize for remotely hijacking a MacBook Pro running Mac OS 10.4. It took him less than 10 hours to uncover a vulnerability and set up a Web page to exploit it.

In a later interview, Dai Zovi declared the Mac OS to be less secure than Vista. Duh.

Color inkjets that use combination ink cartridges cost more to run than those that use separate cartridges

That could be true because when you use multiple color cartridges, you only have to replace one of them and not the whole kit and kaboodle.

If someone has hacked your PC or turned it into a zombie, you'd know about it.

Nope. Most people don't catch when their systems slow down a tad or have heavier than usual disk activity.

Additionally, if you're unlucky enough to get snagged by one of the top tier hackers, Malware can often shut down your antivirus software, firewall, or Windows Update service software and then it can operate freely and you may never know it.

source: PCWORLD.
Image source: Wikipedia Commons

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