Archive for January, 2010
Searches for ‘iPad’ lead to malicous sites
Saturday, January 30th, 2010by Larry Magid
Security companies are warning consumers and Web site operators to be wary of iPad-related search scams.
“This is just the kind of opportunity fraudsters like to exploit by poisoning search terms,” said Symantec’s Candid Wueest. Wueest also warned about “iPad-related spam and phishing attacks hitting consumers hard over the coming weeks.”
Don Debolt, CA’s director of threat research, warned about “black hat search optimization”–a scam whereby hackers take advantage of security flaws in blogs and other sites that use PHP scripting language to embed popular search terms like iPad to trick search engines into directing people to compromised legitimate sites that may have nothing to with the subject matter at hand. If people click on the link to a page on that infected site, they are then redirected to a malicious site that can implant malware on their machine or tempt them to install a rogue security product.
It has nothing to do with the iPad itself. Similar techniques have exploited other popular searches such as the Haitian earthquake and the death of Michael Jackson. Google has a trends page that shows hot topics and hot searches. On Thursday afternoon, the iPad was represented four times on the Top 10 list. “Obama State of the Union” led the list.
The entire process is automated, said Debolt. “We found that it’s a very systematic and programmatic process right now.” The attackers, he said, are using software to query search engines to find out the popular search topics and then “feeding that information into compromised Web sites so that those compromised sites and the content they put on those sites get indexed by the search engine bots.” To the end user it looks as if those sites have relevant content, but when you click on those pages, you are immediately taken to another site that has the malware.
Debolt warns people to be careful if a search engine points to a site where “the root domain of the URL doesn’t have any type of affiliation to the topic or is not an information portal you’re familiar with.” He warns site operators, especially those with a content management system that uses PHP, including Joomla, WordPress, and Droopa, to be sure they are using the latest version of their Web software.
I have a bit of experience with injected code. I operate a number of WordPress blogs including SafeKids.com which, a few years ago started serving up Google ads for Viagra and other male enhancement products. These were far from appropriate context-sensitive ads for an Internet safety site and when I took a look at my site’s code, I discovered that there were hundreds of links and terms that had been injected to my site as a result of a security flaw in my WordPress template. I replaced the template and updated the WordPress software and the problem went away. Now I’m careful to make sure I’m always running the latest version of WordPress.
As usual, people are cautioned to make sure they are using up-to-date security software and that both their operating system and browser are up to date.
This column originally appeared on CNET News.com
Safer Skin Care: How Far Do You Go?
Saturday, January 30th, 2010 When I have some extra cash (which is not often) I sometimes go through our list of Safer Skin Care and purchase a sampler set of something I haven’t tried yet. It gives me a chance to try something new first hand as well as keep up with any reformulations that might occur as time [...] Related posts:- Baby Skin Care Products: A Quick Users Guide
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iPad searches can lead to malware
Thursday, January 28th, 2010Security companies are warning consumers and Web site operators to be wary of iPad-related search scams.
“This is just the kind of opportunity fraudsters like to exploit by poisoning search terms,” said Symantec’s Candid Wueest. Wueest also warned about “iPad-related spam and phishing attacks hitting consumers hard over the coming weeks.”
Don Debolt, CA’s director of threat research, warned about “black hat search optimization”–a scam whereby hackers take advantage of security flaws in blogs and other sites that use PHP scripting language to embed popular search terms like iPad to trick search engines into directing people to compromised legitimate sites that may have nothing to with the subject matter at hand. If people click on the link to a page on that infected site, they are then redirected to a malicious site that can implant malware on their machine or tempt them to install a rogue security product.
It has nothing to do with the iPad itself. Similar techniques have exploited other popular searches such as the Haitian earthquake and the death of Michael Jackson. Google has a trends page that shows hot topics and hot searches. On Thursday afternoon, the iPad was represented four times on the Top 10 list. “Obama State of the Union” led the list.
The entire process is automated, said Debolt. “We found that it’s a very systematic and programmatic process right now.” The attackers, he said, are using software to query search engines to find out the popular search topics and then “feeding that information into compromised Web sites so that those compromised sites and the content they put on those sites get indexed by the search engine bots.” To the end user it looks as if those sites have relevant content, but when you click on those pages, you are immediately taken to another site that has the malware.
Debolt warns people to be careful if a search engine points to a site where “the root domain of the URL doesn’t have any type of affiliation to the topic or is not an information portal you’re familiar with.” He warns site operators, especially those with a content management system that uses PHP, including Joomla, WordPress, and Droopa, to be sure they are using the latest version of their Web software.
I have a bit of experience with injected code. I operate a number of WordPress blogs including SafeKids.com which, a few years ago started serving up Google ads for Viagra and other male enhancement products. These were far from appropriate context-sensitive ads for an Internet safety site and when I took a look at my site’s code, I discovered that there were hundreds of links and terms that had been injected to my site as a result of a security flaw in my WordPress template. I replaced the template and updated the WordPress software and the problem went away. Now I’m careful to make sure I’m always running the latest version of WordPress.
As usual, people are cautioned to make sure they are using up-to-date security software and that both their operating system and browser are up to date.
This column originally appeared on CNET News.com
SafeMama Cheat Sheet: Dishwashing Detergents
Thursday, January 28th, 2010 Well hello there! I know I’ve kind of slacked off on writing anything. And like Kathy so kindly pointed out, we’ve been kind of going through a learning curve being new moms of two. I’ll tell you, I don’t know how people have more than two children. You all are saints! That said, I’m really [...] Related posts:- SafeMama Review: Dapple Dish Liquid
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SafeKids Online Song with Daffy Dave
Tuesday, January 26th, 2010Ten years ago childrens’ entertainer Daffy Dave recorded the SafeKids Online Song exclusively for SafeKids.com. We haven’t promoted that song for quite awhile and thought that this would be a good time to bring it back.
As with much of the advice on SafeKids.com, this song is aimed at younger children, not teenagers.
SafeKids Online Song with Daffy Dave
Daffy Dave sings the SafeKids song
The SafeKids Online Song
Now listen kids when you click on the web and you’re surfin’ for somethin’ to do;chattin’ in a Chattanooga chat room with a man named “Mr. Kazoo”;well, don’t give out your name and number or your address too!It ain’t safe to give it out, if you ain’t got a clue.
Now, I’m not sayin’ that strangers are bad or that you can’t make friends,I’m just sayin’ it’s smart to keep it safewhen your parents aren’t watchin’…(so) don’t give out your name and number or your address too!It ain’t safe to give it out if you ain’t got a clue.
(spoken): “That’s right, Kids! You don’t want to give out private information on the Internet. You don’t want to give out your phone number,the name of your school, your address, your password…and certainly not yourparents credit card numbers! Oh no! That’s just between you and yourparents!”
Now there’s good stuff on the Internet, but some things might make you upset:a picture or a word that’s bad…just tell your teacher, mom or dad! If you feel uncomfortable, just tell your parents now,then they will help you decide what to choose and how.
Now most folks on the Internet are nice to everyone,but some are mean like bullies who act nasty just for fun!So, don’t take it hard if someone says something real mean,just say “good-bye”, click-away, and keep your own nose clean.
It’s cool to be a good citizen of the world and when you go Online,you can tell jokes and read a funny story, but just keep this in mind:All those other clickers on the other side, it’s true,are human beings with hopes and dreams and feelings just like you.
Now if you’re Online and you can’t remember what to do,just click-on “The SafeKids Online Song” and it will get you through.You can still have lots of fun and be a safe kid too,just be polite and keep your private info. safe with you…you can still have lots of fun and be a safe kid too,just be polite and keep your private info. safe with you.
by “Daffy Dave” (aka Dave Mampel) and Larry Magid
(c) 2000 Larry Magid and Dave Mampel
Words by Dave Mampel and Larry Magid
Music by Dave Mampel
(c) 2000 Online Safety Project & Dave Mampel
Kids spend 7.5 hours per day on ‘entertainment media’
Sunday, January 24th, 2010by Larry Magid
A new Kaiser Family Foundation study about kids’ use of media has some startling implications.
It found that “entertainment media” use among children and teens is up dramatically from five years ago. It also found that about 70 percent of youth say their families have no rules about how much time they can spend with TV, video games or computers.
I have to admit I was a bit disturbed after poring through the 85-page report. But it’s important to put this study into a broader context of how kids use media and how kids manage risk.
Kids today spend an average of 7 hours and 38 minutes a day consuming what the report calls “entertainment media.” But it gets worse. If you consider that kids are multi-tasking, it’s actually closer to 11 hours. That’s nearly every minute of every day when kids aren’t in school or sleeping.
The report, “Generation M2: Media in the Lives of 8- to 18-Year-Olds,” compares data from 2009 to similar studies done in 2004 and 1999.
The study found that kids who are heavy media users get lower grades. There was no cause and effect stated, but Kaiser found that 47 percent of heavy media users “say they usually get fair or poor grades (mostly Cs or lower),” compared to 23 percent of light users.
It also found that black and Hispanic youth spend far more time with media than white youth. Black and Hispanic children consume nearly 4½ hours more media daily (13 hours, compared to 8 hours and 36 minutes for whites). TV viewing accounts for a lot of the difference. Black children spend nearly 6 hours and Hispanics just under 5½ hours watching TV, compared to roughly 3½ hours a day for white youth, the report said.
Watching regular old TV actually declined by 25 minutes a day since 2004. But when you add in TV consumption online and on cell phones, it went up.
Not surprisingly, kids are spending more time using computers than they were five years ago — up to one hour and 29 minutes from one hour 2 minutes in 2004. Also no surprise, social networking is occupying more of their time.
“In a typical day,” said the report, “40 percent of young people will go to a social networking site, and those who do visit these sites will spend an average of almost an hour a day there. Fifty-three percent of 15- to 18-year-olds use social networking sites.
Mobile devices account for a lot of kids’ media use today. Sixty-six percent of 8- to 18-year-olds now have cell phones, compared to 39 percent five years ago. Seventy-six percent have iPods and other media players, up from 18 percent. Kids spend an average of 33 minutes a day talking on a cell phone, while 7th-to-12th graders spend an average of one hour and 35 minutes texting — that’s 118 messages per day.
While I have serious concerns about kids — and adults, for that matter — spending too much time using media, polishing their Facebook pages or texting with their friends, I don’t think it’s the same as the passive media consumption of previous generations.
Social networking and interaction with peers has lots of positive implications as well. We should compare this with how kids earlier spent time in malls, cafes and bowling alleys, and talking on landlines. Kids hang out online just as they used to hang out in these other venues. True, using a computer to access Facebook is a type of media consumption, but it’s really social interaction. Besides, it’s not just consumption. Kids are also producing media in the form of posts, photos and videos.
I’m in no way dismissing some of the disturbing findings about a generation of youth that is involved with media nearly every minute they’re awake and not in school. I think schools and parents need to put some thought into kids’ media diets.
But I know some incredibly bright and engaged kids who are growing up and thriving in this media environment. As anyone who spends time around teens will tell you — most of them are a joy to be around. And they’re media-savvy too.
This article originally appeared in the San Jose Mercury News on January 25, 2009
Whole Foods 365 Brand Body Care Reviewed on LovelySafeMama.com
Saturday, January 23rd, 2010 As requested in our recent “Help Us Help You” Suggestion Box I went ahead and weighed in on what we think of the Whole Foods brand of body care 365 Everyday Value over on LovelyMama! If you aren’t familiar with LovelyMama.com, we opened it up to talk about and review safer skin care for the [...] Related posts:- 1, 4-Dioxane in Organic Body Care Products
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Study Links Non-stick Chemicals to Thyroid Illnesses
Friday, January 22nd, 2010 This is not shocking news to me. We wrote about safer cookware last year and the EWG has been hemming and hawing over PFOA’s for years. A new study, done by British researchers found that people with high levels of the chemical perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in their blood have higher rates of thyroid diseases — [...] Related posts:- Dear SafeMama: Safer Non-Stick Cookware
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We need to rethink online safety
Friday, January 22nd, 2010by Larry Magid
I’ve been involved in the online safety world since 1994 which, in web terms, is forever. Over the years, a lot of individuals and organizations have joined with efforts to protect kids online but, unfortunately, many online safety messages miss the mark.
Like anything new, the online world once seemed scary to a lot of people and it was easy to imagine all sorts of bad things that could happen to people who use it — especially children. True, there was (and is) material that’s inappropriate for kids including pornography and hate speech. It’s also true that there are criminals who use to the net try to exploit people and find children to abuse. But that’s also true in our communities and — sadly — even in some homes. What’s also true about the Internet is that you can’t sexually abuse someone through a screen. You can try to lure them, you can shock them, you can upset them but you can’t enact any physical harm — that has to be done in person.
Back in 1994 when I wrote the first edition of Child Safety on the Information Highway for the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, we didn’t have research to distinguish between likely and exaggerated risks. But organizations like the Crimes Against Children Research Center are actually examining risk and causing safety advocates to re-think our messaging.
Predator risk exaggerated
As I’ve said before, the predator danger has been largely exaggerated. That’s not to say that there aren’t adults who — if given the chance — would use the net to lure teenagers into sexual encounters — but it is to say that the number of actual teens and children who are victimized is very small, especially when compared to other risks.
Last year I had the honor of serving on the Internet Safety Technical Task Force, a group of internet safety experts from academia, industry and non-profits that was coordinated by Harvard Law School’s Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society. Our report, which was compiled with the help of some of the world’s leading researchers, concluded that sexual predation, while a concern, was far less likely than other forms of harm such as bullying and harassment.
The Berkman report also cited research showing that “cases typically involved post-pubescent youth who were aware that they were meeting an adult male for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity.” In other words, in the rare situation where a child is exploited, it is almost always a teen who knowingly engages in the activity. It’s not the 40 year old man who poses as a 12 year old girl. The victims, in most cases, are youth who, for whatever reason, are seeking out the attention of an older person. Research also found that these victims are typically kids who frequently engage in high-risk activity on and offline line. Messages like “don’t talk to strangers online” are very unlikely to reach these young people. What they need instead is serious intervention from professionals who know how to work with “high risk kids.”
Real risks
The real risks — statistically speaking — are things that kids do to themselves and others. Those include cyberbullying, sexting, loss of reputation, theft of online identity and other security risks (including weak and shared passwords) and of course wasting time, obsessive use of technology and over-exposure to commercial messaging.
Speaking of wasting time, a report issued this week by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that youth (8-18) devote an average of 7 hours and 38 minutes to consuming entertainment media during a typical day. But when you factor in multi-tasking, they actually wind up with 10 hours and 45 minutes of content. In a CBS News and CNET podcast interview the report director, Vicky Rideout expressed concern that kids are spending far too much time passively consuming media, not just on TV sets but on computers, cell phone, game consoles and iPods. In her NetFamilyNews commentary on the study, Anne Collier (who is my co-director at ConnectSafely.org) has a more positive and optimistic view of kids use of media, pointing out that “a growing body of research shows that the youth-media story is actually more about sharing, playing with, and producing media, individually and collectively, than consuming it.”
Missed opportunities & the need for “Online Safety 3.0″
The biggest risk is not so much the danger of being harmed but the danger of missed opportunities, especially at school. As we point out in, Online Safety 3.0: Protecting and Empowering Youth, schools too often block access to social media and fail to use it in the educational process. While it’s true that there are some online activities that ought not to be done during school hours, banning all social media is the 21st century equivalent of banning all books just because some books are inappropriate for use in school. Speaking of books and social media, check out School & social media: Uber big picture where Anne Collier draws a comparison between today’s social media and books back in the days of Guttenberg.
I’m also concerned that Internet safety education is missing a big opportunity to reinforce digital citizenship, media literacy and critical thinking — skills that will serve for life, on and off the net. We can certainly warn kids about the dangers du jour, but the ultimate solution to keeping kids safe is to instill an internal desire to treat themselves and others respectfully. And critical thinking doesn’t just protect kids from criminals but from marketing hype, political demagoguery and all the other manipulative tricks that we encounter in society, the marketplace and our personal relationships.
This article also appeared on Huffington Post
My thoughts on Sec. Clinton’s Internet freedom speech
Thursday, January 21st, 2010by Larry Magid
Sec. Clinton speaks at Newseam in DC
I have mostly positive feelings about Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s speech on Internet freedoms that she delivered Thursday at the Newseum in Washington DC.
Although the speech was reportedly in the works for weeks, she addressed the alleged attacks on Google’s servers in China designed to spy on Chinese dissidents. She also alluded to Google’s announcement that it would no longer censor results of searches in China by suggesting that American businesses should resist censorship: “Censorship should not be in any way accepted by any company from anywhere. And in America, American companies need to make a principled stand. This needs to be part of our national brand. I’m confident that consumers worldwide will reward companies that follow those principles.”
Committing U.S. Resources
She also committed U.S. resources to the cause of Internet freedom. “Today I’m announcing that over the next year, we will work with partners in industry, academia, and nongovernmental organizations to establish a standing effort that will harness the power of connection technologies and apply them to our diplomatic goals.”
And she sort of announced a product, or at least an idea for one. “Let’s say I want to create a mobile phone application that would allow people to rate government ministries, including ours, on their responsiveness and efficiency and also to ferret out and report corruption. The hardware required to make this idea work (mobile phones) is already in the hands of billions of potential users. And the software involved would be relatively inexpensive to develop and deploy.
Note to Sec. Clinton: Even bad guys deserve free speech
While most of her comments encouraged freedom of speech, she did hedge her bet in one respect. She said “we do not tolerate those who incite others to violence, such as the agents of al-Qaida who are, at this moment, using the internet to promote the mass murder of innocent people across the world And hate speech that targets individuals on the basis of their race, religion, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation is reprehensible.” While I agree with her on both counts, it’s important that our government and our allies realize that the suppression of any form of speech — even speech we despise — is a step down a slippery slope towards censorship. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t condemn speech that promotes terrorism and hate but it does mean that we need to be extremely thoughtful about any attempts to supress it with anytng other than more speech to counter lies, hate and extremist proportional.
Lessons for American families and schools
Anne Collier of NetFamilyNews (who is my co-director at ConnectSafely.org analyzed the speech from her perspective as an advocate of young people’s use of technology, saying that she “couldn’t help but think about how much we need to respect, teach, and model good citizenship at home and school (here and in every country) – using the media kids use and love – in order to realize Secretary Clinton’s vision for Internet freedom.” In response to Sec. Clinton’s suggestion that we need to “create norms of behavior among states and encourage respect for the global networked commons,” Collier added that ” we need to start here at home, promoting and modeling norms of good behavior online and in homes and classrooms using the social (behavioral) media and technologies where so much kid behavior occurs now.”
A bold line in the ‘cyber-sand’
Adam Theirer, president of the Progress & Freedom Foundation blogged at Technology Liberation Front that Clinton’s remarks “will go down as a historic speech in the field of Internet policy since she drew a bold line in the cyber-sand regarding exactly where the United States stands on global online freedom.”
He reminded his readers that “less than 15 years ago in this country we had a heated debate over whether American citizens should even be allowed to use encryption technology, or if the government should “hold the keys” to such technologies.” That was during Mrs. Clinton’s husbands’ administration. At the risk of name dropping I was on Air Force 2 with Al Gore when the vice president admitted — perhaps for the first time — that the administration was thinking of abandoning its policy of supporting what now seems like an archaic policy.
Watch speech, listen to 8 minutes of excerpts or read the transcript
If you have an hour to watch Sec. Clinton’s speech you can do so here. If you have 8 minutes to spare, you can listen to my podcast with excerpts and brief comments. Here is a complete transcript.