I'm Probably Lazy

Discussion in 'privacy general' started by Rico, Mar 9, 2014.

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  1. Rico

    Rico Registered Member

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    After watching today's 60 minutes, broadcast, i installed the BHO disconnect software (add on) for FF. Is this crazy?

    I understand store "reward cards", they seem harm less, where on line data monitoring, may be somewhat nefarious.

    Is this paranoia, or safety, should I add "do not track" add on to FF?

    I understand, the need for marketing vs privacy. OR "The chicken & egg" controversy, so in a security forum, is this prudence (disconnect, no track, etc), or paranoiao_O? Mods feel free to move to polls section.

    Thanks
    Rico
     
  2. 1PW

    1PW Registered Member

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    I too watched that segment. If it's crazy, I and some us have quarters in the same asylum as you. :D

    I'm using DoNotTrackMe, but you might look at Lightbeam too.

    IMHO, rational paranoia requires no treatment.

    They're not always so easy to find here, but you might keep vigilance for other browser hardening techniques. Posts & threads by MrBrian (and others) on this forum are always interesting & informative.

    HTH :)
     
  3. MrBrian

    MrBrian Registered Member

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  4. MrBrian

    MrBrian Registered Member

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  5. MrBrian

    MrBrian Registered Member

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  6. MrBrian

    MrBrian Registered Member

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  7. Nebulus

    Nebulus Registered Member

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    IMO this "frightening" is a good thing because it raises awareness about the tracking and privacy invasion.
     
  8. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

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    There's nothing paranoid about blocking ads or defeating tracking or data mining. It's an appropriate response to those who profit from minding everyone elses business. It doesn't matter of it's marketing-data collection companies or the NSA. Any response that increases their costs or makes their activities more difficult is appropriate. We weren't asked if they could track us or use or activity for profit. We aren't being compensated for what they're taking. If we as individuals did the things they do in the name of profit, we'd face charges of theft, harassment, and stalking.

    There is no "chicken or egg" controversy here. Marketing doesn't depend on data mining or tracking. Before the internet, neither was even possible. Good products don't need marketing. They sell themselves via the most effective method of advertizing, word of mouth. Regardless of what marketing/data hoarding companies claim, the internet doesn't need them. They need the internet to survive. Restrictions on their activities, legal or physical, won't hurt anything but their bottom line. They aren't going to pull out or take their money elsewhere. There is nowhere else for them to go. They aren't generating revenue. They're taking revenue that would have gone somewhere else.

    To the original poster. Could you explain the title of this thread? Lazy in what manner?
     
  9. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

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    Regarding BHOs, anyone remember BHO Demon? The last version is from 2005. BHOs have been an issue for a long time.
     
  10. dw2108

    dw2108 Registered Member

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    And noone, Tony cut out on BHO Demon. Does anyone know why? This was too strange, and also stuck me as such at the time.

    Dave
     
  11. CloneRanger

    CloneRanger Registered Member

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    Sure do :) I & a lot of others on here & elsewhere had it back in 2004/5 & onwards. That was in the good ol' 98SE & IE6 days ;) And i know you're still on 98 !

    In fact, i recommended BHO Demon only recently to our good member controler, who was trying to locate/delete etc some items on his IE.

    Amazing to think that All those precautions etc etc we started taking back then, were Definately worth it. Not just to block malware/spyware etc, but in light of All the revelations we've discovered were TRUE :eek:
     
  12. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

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    I probably have a copy on a CD, somewhere. Been ages since I've seen or needed it. The good old days of "in your face" adware and spyware that dared you to try to remove it, much of which gained access to your system via IE6, or Kazaa. Those unending battles wore out a lot of malware removal people, myself included. Too many memories, a lot of them bad. Interesting how BHOs and similar problems were forgotten about for a long time. If I'm remembering right, wasn't it rootkits that took over the limelight? It's interesting how much hasn't changed. Fake adware removers back then. Fake AVs now. Fortunately there's an easy way to permanently fix the BHO problem, at least on XP and earlier systems. Get rid of Internet Explorer.
     
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