security

RJ_4

Has anyone had there e-mail hacked while on this site

Jamie Hall

"anybody"

is pretty broad -- but, although I've had my address list stolen (but not while on this site, I don't think) I haven't, at least.  And stealing an address list isn't really the same as hacking...



On the other hand, I do run through both software and hardware firewalls, and have a full time, real time virus scanner operating, and perform all software updates as soon as they are available...



As well as avoiding quite a long list of web sites which are known to have hacking portals or security flaws on them (usually in the ads, but sometimes built right in!)

Zman

What are you thinking?

Did you have your email hacked.

Mine was hacked a little while back.It was not connected to this site.My IT guy said I had a weak password and that a computer program had guessed it.

I am under the impression that you have to download an executable file to be "hacked" at that level. I have never downloaded anything but jpegs and pdfs from this site.

I don't think it is possible to be hacked by just visiting a web site.

Carl

Jamie Hall

True

Something executable does have to download to be hacked.  Unfortunately, that something can be and often is contained in an image.  It is rarely in a .pdf (and if you have done the Reader updates, you're OK at the moment on that).  And yes, just visiting very rarely can result in a hack.  Clicking on ads in a website can and does.  The real hazard from some websites is the amount of information they collect on you, just by visiting -- but I'm a bit paranoid about privacy, I guess.



If you have decent firewalls and virus checking (including, or perhaps especially, real time checking of all downloads as they stream) you're in pretty decent shape!



Now, however, if you respond to that urgent plea from your previously unknown Aunt Matilda who was mugged in Nigeria and needs your bank account, social security and credit card numbers to get home... !!!

Jean-David Beyer

Now, however, if you respond to that urgent plea from your previously unknown Aunt Matilda who was ...

I have a friend who lives in Astoria, Queens. She is a pianist and toy pianist and I knew she was in Chicago.



So I was very surprised to find out she had her credit cards, passport, etc., stolen from her\ in western Europe somewhere and needed several hundred dollars wired to her to get a new passport from the US consul in whatever country that was. And the money was not to be wired the the US consular office. Doubly suspicious.



Fortunately, she has two e-mail addresses, so I sent her an e-mail to the one that did not send me the request for funds. So I did not wire any money to whoever.



I would have if I could verify, independently, that the request was on the up and up.

DanHolohan

Email addresses

None of them are stored on this site.  When you register to post on the Wall, you're going into the same part of the site that people use to buy things from the Store. Your information then travels to a completely separate site where we store names, email address, and physical addresses. We don't store credit card information. We don't even see that information. The site sends that directly to the bank. All of this is secured and protected by VeriSign and verified by Trust Guard.



This is why, if you want to reach another Wallie privately, you have to click on their name within their post. That request travels through a separate site without revealing the person's email address. The person you're trying to reach will get an automated email, letting him or her know that you'd like to correspond privately. It's then up to the recipient to either respond to or ignore the person.



Click on the Trust Guard button above the banner ads to your right on the Wall's home page to learn more.



If you got hacked, it wasn't from here.