What happened to Wilders Security?

This forum seems dead completely compared with how it was before, active, full of conversations and new topics. Now it's only activity in the Software subforum which is basically just another replica of the many major sites out there posting software updates (ie. Majorgeeks, SoftPedia, etc.)

I keep checking the Antivirus subforum multiple times daily but not a single post or new thread other than the useless Avast Antivirus BETA bla bla bla update and Newegg deals

I find myself visiting another security forum due to the activity there and more importantly, I feel like members there can discuss freely, no rule about no AV comparisons (don't know what's the issue with that, if we don't compare AVs on a security forum, then what's the use of a forum anyway), no rules about links having to post links in a tag as if people here would post anything malicious and as if not 99% of members here already have a security solution, ad blocker, etc.

This saddens me and I hope the traffic would come back to what it was before.

 

I think social media & streaming drains people's attention.

 

Unfortunately for many of us long timers that's the fly in the ointment and monkey wrench.

Social media sticks in my crawl but we are all stuck with it driving attention away from expert discussion and new discovery comparisons. I will remain Old School come heck or high water however it turns out.

 

What originally drew my attention to this forum (and still does) is the backup, imaging & disk mgmt section.
Back then, it was very active with lots of great contributors. It's a lot quieter these days, but it's still OK.

 

What fora is that?

 

+1

 

Computers are by and large not infected anymore compared to say 15 years ago in the XP era. MS Defender is doing a great job, I would also add that malware for the average user is no longer a threat, and imaging systems are more and more mainstream and easy to use. I’m not complaining but I agree Wilders is a bit too quite compared to the past.

 

I have often asked the same question but have not been brave enough to post it up here lol. Whilst I agree that a lot of what has caused its quietening, such as social media I don't think that's the entire cause. There is another well known site similar to this that is a lot more active as they allow more open discussions such as A verses B, which is forbidden here. Either way, its a shame as this was always my go to site where I did learn an awful lot about security and how to avoid being hit by malware.

 

Because every activity is being hushed. When you post AV A vs AV B, it gets locked, because it was already discussed before. But AVs change with each version. You would not want to use Ewido or SuperAntispyware these days.
Not to mention the mess it topics, like if you post something about Windows 11 it get moved into the one long thread and it gets lost there. So discussing something new is out of question, unless you get lucky and manage to notice it.

 

I agree.

Part of the problem is the way some threads are titled. Secondly, it's the way they're managed. Old threads are not allowed to die. All the attempted new threads are bundled into the old dated thread titles.
Here are six examples of very dated thread titles that are still active. There are others. Anyone visiting this forum would be forgiven for thinking they're very old dated bumped threads.

• Windows 11 leak reveals new UI, Start menu, and more
• Windows 10 Announced - Released 29-Jul-2015
  
• Firefox's massive overhaul moves to beta
• Former Opera CEO Launches Vivaldi, A New Browser For Power Users
• This is what the new Chromium-based Edge looks like
• jv16 PowerTools 2014 updated x

None of the above thread titles are current. If mods would prefer fewer longer threads, then name the threads appropriately to avoid them becoming dated so quickly. Also avoid version numbers and dates.
Otherwise, newer, more up to date relevant threads should be allowed to be created.

 

The same was for me. I don't believe that the problem is the Social. I believe that the main cause is that some years ago they appeared regularly many news programs, especially security softwares, and this produced tests, discussions, comparisons, exchange of experiences here in the Forum.
More over I also agree with Rollers that says that discussions as A verses B would be interesting and stimulate discussions, and with TairikuOkami and Hadron about old threads that suffocate and hide potential new threads.

 

It would also be interesting to know the age of the forum members.

If the average age is quite high,probably, a certain amount of blame can be attributed to how the forum is structured that fails to attract new younger members.

Probably putting in new (more modern) features could be a partial solution.

 

I don't post a lot here This form is going to same way as many others have gone in the past Old stagnant and eventually dead, Merging of treads And the famous A vs AV B rule Contributed This current state. The rules and regulations Policies and procedures have to change If these form is to survive It needs to be adaptive And current. With the rules regulations and policies Literally set in stone I'm afraid I can't see that happening anytime soon. There have been many people Who have asked for changes here to To the A vs AV B rule and other things most of them are long gone now Because the change is never come.

 

... and soon this discussion is gone.

 

most likely @ Oldie1950

 

I think you pretty much called it. Security discussion is dead because everyone has an opinion and those turn into arguments. And most security products these days have slowed development because it is the smart thing to do. It used to be every product had a new version every year with an entirely new UI. By the time they fixed the bugs introduced it was time for the next version. Now the UI sticks for years. Nothing to discuss there. I think Norton 22 has been going for over a decade. Nothing exciting to see there.

 

This is the most refreshing thread I have read here in what feels like years. Sad to say, I pop in here now and then anticipating the forum's final obituary. Just my two cents...I agree the current state of this forum is largely due to the stifling of discussion(s) unless along the same old worn and beaten path. That will hardly attract a new audience. It has likely fostered an exodus to other forums that have enough sense to change with the times and not get left behind for being too rigid to do so.

 

MalwareTips forum

 

I even reported that thread (Firefox's massive overhaul moves to beta) saying: Please rename this thread to Firefox or Firefox discussion as the name is a bit confusing it has long been out of BETA now we are talking about minor updates but it got ignored. I was just trying to help make threads neater and easier for people to pick.

@Hadron Precisely, its much easier to see an individual thread about a certain Windows 10 or 11 topic than having to scroll through 10s of pages and hundreds of posts.

 

If we are not allowed to discuss Software A vs B, then this takes away from the main purpose a forum is made for. In fact, I would REALLY like to make a post saying A vs B which is lighter to get user feedback and experiences rather than having to read all those fake reviews online or revert to AVC or AC-TEST with their results which sometimes do not reflect on real world usage.

I get it, such threads might lead to arguments, but we are adults here and if someone breaks the rules or name calls, then deletion of the post and an infraction would help. Not ban the most important topic IMHO for a security forum.

 

+1

 

I fully agree. I feel your pain.

 

I don't post much anymore as I have nothing to add. It seems like the forum's main discussion's now mostly involve Sandboxie, browsers/ad blocking, backup programs with the same 10 people posting. I can only wish it goes back to how it was like 5 years ago.

 

I also visit malwaretips and the bleeping computer forum which can be most helpful..but like most things..you get out what you put in.

 

Wilders is a well run forum. I do not think that social media is stealing all the eyeballs - most of the large SM platforms have already assimilated their drones into a hive mind with collective consciousness. However, the these massive cubes are under assault from the outside and from within. The big 4 are changing and there is new competition that promises no Overlord. Forums may be the ones that suffer the most if this mob gets their act together.

Over a year ago, I signed up on a server (on Masterdon) that is based on Infosec. The Tooters share excellent articles but Wilders has a lot more diverse subject matter. I only wish the categories with 20K plus threads were broken down into subcategories.