Web Bugs

they say spyblocker is very good./ Its a pay version 19.95
or 39.95 for a life time of updates . A really nice programme . http://www.spyblocker-software.com/spyblocker/

 

Not worth the money IMHO. It automates what you can do manually that's all

 

In the essence true. But..
having read boasts that this is the most "advanced" forum on internet security on the web, naturally I would address my comments assuming people had a clue about what was going on and it is along such lines that my comment was made.

 

I dont agree with you in essense JayK . Most people who suibscribe to a forum dont become experts over nite simply because they "Sign up" just like if I join the best Health forum on the web it doesnt mean I shall never catch a cold. Same with firewalls and anti virus/trojon. Some experts can say you dont need a firewall , and they proberbly dont, but for the other (% who may attend expert forums its best they proberbly do.)

 

Well I responded the way I did because I don't think people should spend money unneccessarily. Want to spend money on a good antivirus go ahead (I have 3), firewall? Sure. But when i see something that can be easily replaced with some knowhow, I have to comment.

Besides Solarpower candle, you have over 200 posts on here, you can't be considered a newbie (unless you blew them are on silly threads like this!). Given the form your statement was phrased which sounded like a semi-question " ..."they" say spyblocker is very good." , I thought you would appreciate information.

And I did say "IMHO" and just gave my honest opinion.

I don't understand the reaction I'm getting. Or am I supposed to endorse every commerical security product recommended by wilders here?

 

Paul and others,

I think JayK had good intentions. Many people don't have the money to buy a lot of security software, so they stick with the essential (AV, AT), and see how they can save on the rest without needing to shell out the dough.

JayK, I think it might have been even more useful, perhaps in another thread, to point out the ways in which one could manually perform the tasks that Spyblocker does. Actually, that kind of general thread about doing yourself what software currently does for you would be very useful for security newbies like me. However, many home and casual computer users are uncomfortable or don't want to resort to a hands-on approach when they could have software do it for them. But as they grow more comfortable with their systems and how they work, such information as you might be able to provide would help in their computer education. That's what this forum is about anyway, computer education, and it would be a shame if proposed solutions at Wilders operated on a basis of mutual exclusives.

That's the way I felt about Linux when I started to use it on my laptop. After years on Windows and its automated tasks with GUIs, Linux was a real eye opener and forced me to get down and dirty. I've even switched from Redhat to Gentoo!

 

regarding the setting ones browser security up themselves verses ready made software , i spoke with paul Kurland of spyblocker asking his thoughts on this ,this is his reply ,
Subject: Re: spyblocker

pkurland@spyblocker-software.com wrote:

>>Hi,
>>
>>SpyBlocker handles many things no amount of system tweaking can solve. Some of the things SpyBlocker does can be done less effectively by some good old fashioned know how. But there is no possible way to do some of the things SpyBlocker does without software.
>>
>>Without software, you can achieve some protection no doubt. Also, if one plans to tackle some things themselves without software, they should ask themself if theyalso have the know how to keep up with the latest internet threats.
>>
>>The beauty of our products is that everything is done for you.
>>
>>Thanks,
>>Paul Kurland
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>

For me the keeping up with the latest internet threats is one of the key issues that gives me greater peace of mind by utilising software such as Spyblocker. I do not have the time or patience to reivent the wheel. SPC

 

No offence (but i'm sure you will take offence anyway), but i think it's quite silly to ask a developer of the software such a question, You really think he's going to come right out and admit "YES we are selling stuff, anyone could do for himself!"

Note i'm not saying that this is true in this case , BUT i notice this is a very common reaction here, to quote developers as if they are the final word.

Remember, they have a vested interest in selling their product. While the rest of us, generally don't. (assuming we are not emotionally invested in another opposing product See AV forums for details)

Well, I for one believe that if you just want to rely on software to protect you, you can go ahead, but without the brains or knowledge to go with it, you can be sure to be in trouble eventually.

BTW you are not "reinventing the wheel" , rather you are using Spyblocker to do things that are already built into the system. If anything spyblocker is rebuilding a wheel that has already being invented.

And i'm not advocating zero software, just that between what you can do for yourself and freeware products ,spyblocker doesnt do much more.

That's my opinion , if you already have it, dont let my opinions upset you.

 

isn't freeware program that will do the same thing Spyblocker does? If not could someone post all what spyblocker does that say a program like WebWasher or Proxo can't do?

 

Jayk I and Im sure a few others, are still awaiting your tips and tweeks for browser and system security. I think your contribution would be most welcome . It seems that you waste a bit of energy knocking postings .And your opinion of any one who posts at this forum is rock bottom http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=11602;start=0 Wouldnt the energy be better spent in writting something constructive or a decent solution , rather than more "Bla Bla Bla . I think that you may have some good contributions to make and I for one
look 4wards too them . (the constructive ones ).

 

Well notageek a very good question. But I suppose many supporters of spyblocker don't know what products like proxomitron can do ( I wonder if they even know how spyblocker does what it claims to do), and despite your nick "Notageek" , remember you are a geek! and you reinvent the wheel everytime you use proxomitron ,hosts files or pac files

 

LOL I used to use Spyblocker and thought it was a rather good program. I went to Webwasher and than to proxo cuz you're able to make your own filters and stuff like that. I knew there was a learning curve on Proxo but there's lot of help out there. I think the people that use Spyblocker choice to use it cuz it's simple to use. They don't have to worry about them so called bugs that spyblocker blocks (I can't really recall what Spyblocker blocks cuz I used it when it was free, Long story there ). But as far as I know, you can't block web bugs with IE. You might be able to with other Browsers but I'm not so sure on that. So if Spyblocker blocks web bugs than there's a reason to use it.

 

BEGIN RANT

Actually I don't think just using Proxomitron qualifies as a geek, I was just joking. I suppose making a original new filter, or significantly altering a filter might qualify since you would at least have to have some knowledge of html/http and regexp.

My point , appears to be lost, since this thread degenerated into my software is better then yours contest despite a careful phrasing "IMHO not worth the money".

What was my point? Simply this, do not just run out and buy or run any other security software just because you find that so and so online test says you are not secure.

ZAP,proxomitron,spyblocker,webwasher,adshield all claim to block web-bugs, but how do you know which actually works better, and which just duplicates what you could do with your browser? or something free?

By turning off all javascripts,java etc and images downloading from third party servers, can web-bugs still run? What about server-side scripts?

The traditional definiton of a web-bug is a small transparent gif, but are there other kinds of bugs?

Online tests? How do you know those are accurate?
Or is it a simple matter of checking each website with various web-bug detectors and see which finds the most . How do you know it's just not false positives?

It's quite sad I don't see people discuss this kind of issues, all i see is people saying .."I hear software X is quite good". Why is it good? How does it claim to work?

I don't claim to be an expert. But for a advanced forum like Wilder's security I don't really see any such discussions. The only ones perhaps worth reading are the AV forums. Sure it gets rowdy at times, but it's educational at times, when the AV and AT developers snipe at each other's products.

Or am i expecting too much from this forum?
I supposed the people who really know are keeping quiet, or discuss it elsewhere.


sorry for the rant.

 

http://www.guidescope.com/home/

I have been using this app for a few weeks now. Impressive for bugs, ads, cookies. Interesting 'community' concept. Strong privacy statement. Has passed malware, Trojan etc . . . tests. Has done away with need for a standalone popupstopper. Can be edited for those that like to add their own filters, txt. mods.

But I do not see many other posts about it here or elsewhere. Am I a self-appointed sacrificial lamb??!!

 

My OutPost and SpyBlocker did what it was suppose to do. And I will not Post what I wanted to.


Since this is a Poll about Web Bugs!

 

i think a smalll popup prog i have gets some of the web bugs but not alll, its called popthis.

 

Popthis! doesnt do web-bugs. Try again.

 

At the suggestion of a friend, and although I don't use IE much except for MS updates, I installed BUGNOSIS in IE about a month ago and went on a bug hunt. Within a short time I found web bugs at:

http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-3173_7-5084364.html?tag=cnetfd.ldgif
http://shareware.search.com/search?cat=237&tag=ex.sa.fd.srch.sa_win&q=registry+utilties
http://reviews.cnet.com/2001-6028_7-0.html?tag=cnetfd.dir
http://www.cnet.com/?tag=ex.se_sa.ros.col.bw&destUrl=http%253A%252F%252Fwebservices%252Ecnet%252Ecom%252Fbandwidth%252F
https://broadband.msn.com/?xAPID=1685&DI=340&HL=BroadbandQL
http://join.msn.com/?page=dept/byoa&pgmarket=en-us&xAPID=1744&DI=340
http://www.adera.be/en/products/pop3_down.cfm

Some of the bugs seem to have been removed since then. My understanding is that these things can't jump into your computer, but that they do represent a sort of invasion of privacy.

Regards

 

web BUGS!? get a bottle of insecticide and spray those bugs!

 

heres a couple of great links first posted by Minoka at the Outpost forum , should give you a good idea where the most webbugs are being used:

http://www.securityspace.com/s_survey/data/man.200404/webbug_site.html
http://www.securityspace.com/s_survey/data/man.200404/webbug_traffic.html

i used to block all 1x1 etc images with Outpost and i add all buggy sites to the HOSTS file and IP block the rest , Admuncher is also my favourite bug muncher , i got rid of bugnosis a long time ago , its was just too annoying after a while.

 

I use b9 for email and get a few surprises sometimes when I see the results of the scan and where the email originated. I also have SpyBlocker and AdSubtract along with the other bits and pieces.

Bugnosis is available to me. It's beta V1.3 I used it a long time ago but got fed up with all the alarms.