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Original poster

StopBadware.org

81 replies

NetworkGuy · 22/12/2010 07:43

Looks like someone has found the posts regarding under-13s using FaceBook and decided to report

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/1109156

to the StopBadware.org service. Although the idea is not a bad one, the service is used by Google to 'alert' (like 'scare the hell') people that a site may infect their PC, and does its utmost to stop the user from visiting.

Happened also to a client of mine (photographer with his own site) and lost him some visitors and potential work.

OP posts:
Original poster
NetworkGuy · 22/12/2010 07:58

Just the reporting (to StopBadware) was malicious (by some 12yo swearing, female, Facebook fans, perhaps) but the page itself is built with elements (headers, adverts, links, text) just like any other page in Talk, from the same code as shows the rest of the threads, so if there was anything malicious being downloaded on that page (and I don't believe it for a second) it would affect every other page in Talk too.

OP posts:
SilveryMoon · 22/12/2010 07:56

i'm getting a message up telling me this site will infect my computer, but only on certain threads.
are you ssaying i'm safe?

apologies for lack of capital letters, poorly toddler on my lap

FlightoftheCrimbleTree · 22/12/2010 07:52

Oh so it could well have been malicious? Sorry, not reading properly.

FlightoftheCrimbleTree · 22/12/2010 07:51

Oh is that what's happened? That sounds Ok then. Some of us thought it was malicious.

Original poster
NetworkGuy · 22/12/2010 07:47

Incidentally it does seem limited to that individual page, as other threads I am on do not get the Firefox / StopBadware blocking message.

OP posts:
Original poster
NetworkGuy · 22/12/2010 07:43

Unfortunately the developers at Firefox have included this check via Google to see if a site is reported as carrying Malware and gives an alert too.

It means I will probably reduce my use of Firefox now, because StopBadware seems easy to use to con people into not visiting sites, just by making a malicious report!

With a dynamic IP and a hundred 'throwaway' mail addresses I could report many competitors to my business and cause them quite a lot of hassle - eg report them midday on Christmas Eve and many will have no IT staff in for 10 days to even start to sort out them being blocked by Google/Firefox.

Hmmmmm, what an idea...

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