Re: Spyware becomes increasingly malicious

["Jeff Shultz" <jeffshultz () wvi com>]

** Reply to message from "Alexei Roudnev" <alex () relcom net> on Wed, 14
Jul 2004 22:52:07 -0700
> May be, idea was that people read 'license', click button (I agree) and
> follow it - never write a code which violates this license? But it is not
> true - 99.99% people do not read it  and behave as a common sense is saying
> not as !@#$ MS lawers fictioned... They see a wall wih a gates - and they go
> thru this gates, no matter what is written on the posters around (except, as
> I said, if they see an angry dog next to the gate). /On the other hand, they
> knows that coffee is hot and waterfall is dangerous and dogs can bite -:)/.
> You must design yous system for this behavior, not for people who _read a
> license_. This licenses are good only for 2 goals - (1) use them as a toalet
> tissue; (2) in case of serious violation allows to suite user if he is in
> USA... -- they do not change people behavior even a bit. Unfortunately,
> Internet is not in USA, so even if we will have 100 strict laws prohibiting
> spyware, it will not help to fight this pests and pets...  System must
> defend itself.

For awhile there, one of the top tech support issues we had to deal
with was new - and automatically implemented - "feature" in Outlook
Express that blocked a person from running or saving something that
Microsoft considered a "dangerous file attachment." 

Such dangerous file attachments included .jpg, .pdf and music files. 

Oddly enough, it didn't seem to include .doc or .xls files.  You know,
the ones that actually can contain macro viruses.

Because of Microsoft's ham-handed and "all or nothing" attempt at
security many people now don't trust or ignore any warning messages
they may receive - they simply want to view their file attachments.

-- 
Jeff Shultz
A railfan pulls up to a RR crossing hoping that
there will be a train.