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OT - Buysight

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John Russell
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3444 Posts

Initially Posted - 01/30/2012 : 13:06:21

I was checking the TV guide listings at TVGuide.com when I noticed a banner advertisement at the top of the screen for items from West Marine that were mentioned in a thread I read earlier today. This is the second time that has happened so I looked into it further. It seems Buysight.com planted a cookie on my machine to make targeted advertising pitches. If you find that happening to you, check out the Opt-Out feature at Buysight.com.

I don't know if they started their trolling here or at the TVGuide site.

John Russell
1999 C250 SR/WK #410
Bay Village, Ohio
Sailing Lake Erie
Don't Postpone Joy!

Edited by - John Russell on 01/30/2012 13:06:54

Joe Diver
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1218 Posts

Response Posted - 01/30/2012 : 14:12:59

I use a Safari plugin called Ghostery. It allows you to block those little buggers.

Edited by - on

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4382 Posts

Response Posted - 01/30/2012 : 14:27:14

Then there's "super cookies" . . .

Edited by - on

redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3476 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2012 : 10:15:02

So I do a google search for 12volt speakers. A pretty involved search.

The next day I get a spam email ( on gmail ) telling me of a really "great" deal on 12volt speakers.

The world wide mall...

I'm not happy with this at all....

Edited by - on

DavidCrosby
Navigator

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USA
240 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2012 : 10:57:11

A friend sent me an e-mail about a Groupon deal that she thought I might be interested in. I only looked at the e-mail, never followed the link. Now I get Groupon spam on a regular basis.

Got a love it.

Edited by - on

dmpilc
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4593 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2012 : 11:14:59

The frequency of Groupon emails is a bit annoying, but we've picked up some really good deals there. One received this morning: $150 toward eye exam, frames, and lenses pkg for $49. SWMBO needs glasses, so we might exercise that one. Another was 50% 0ff on and oil change at a new shop near us.
Admittedly, I just delete about 95% of them.

Edited by - on

redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3476 Posts

Response Posted - 02/01/2012 : 11:46:38

<< Furthermore, some supercookies have additional capabilities, like regenerating regular cookies to prevent their removal by the user >>

Now that gives me the creeps... I'm thinkin droid being such a small OS is lookin better all the time.

Zombie Cookies....

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

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USA
3758 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2012 : 07:53:39

Ghostery, and probably others, really help address the issue. Nearly all commercial sites track you if you don't block it. Click "Like" on facebook and you'll get a tracker planted, do almost anything on Google and bingo. Looking for a local business? Tracking software knows your approximate location before you find the business. Somebody has to pay for the free web we take for granted, and our data is a big portion of the currency.

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

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USA
3758 Posts

Response Posted - 02/02/2012 : 08:04:18

Until is was discovered and reported, Android had data collecting software written into its base code that was "On" by default that HTC and several others used to actively harvest and sell data.. IOS hast it too, but its default state is "Off" like some of the Android phones and it is available right in the "Settings" menu.

Edited by - on

waterbaby
Navigator

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USA
168 Posts

Response Posted - 02/03/2012 : 05:55:21

We are living in a new phase of technology. Unless you want to 'Unplug' you are not going to get around it. I don't even think you really can unplug completely. The best thing to do I think is to try to understand it and keep your more personal things secured. You can fight spam but I don't think you'll ever really win. I sort of gave up on that and just created a junk mail folder with automatic filters for anything that comes in that I don't want. I'm using gmail and I never delete anything. They want my data? They've got it. :) Sometimes I'm looking for a coupon for something so I'll go searching through my junk mail to see if I've got anything there. gmail provides an awsome mail search engine BTW. I know some folks use two email accounts one for real people and another for registering with all the discount cards and such. That's too much for me to keep up with so I just use the one account and add a new filter when I get that first message.

If you want to be really creeped out watch the movie 'Eagle Eye'. Pretty much everthing in that movie is technically feasible. What's happened in the last few years with iphone/droid, facebook and twitter is really interesting and cool but frightening when you think about it. They even have face recognition built into facebook which is way over the line I think.

Edited by - on

redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3476 Posts

Response Posted - 02/03/2012 : 06:20:49

Yepper... I bought two domains just to bounce and terminate email addresses around to kill spam.

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

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USA
3758 Posts

Response Posted - 02/03/2012 : 07:37:41

I use a junk email account at Google, a published Editor address, a personal address and a rarely used Facebook account with only my name and email on record and keep my Friends list very short. I keep no credit cards on file at merchants, no private data online, no location and rarely dates on posted photos, use Ghostery, 1Password, Stealth browsing mode, and a firewall. I get spam less than once a week, but I am still sure that there is more info about me in circulation than I would like.

edit: It only takes one less cautious friend clicking on an email with an implanted data harvester to release everything they know about me. I received an online Viagra offer supposedly forwarded by a single, attractive, 30 year old niece about a month ago. She was quite distressed when I told her that everyone in her address book probably got it and her male friends would likely be calling.

Edited by - Dave5041 on 02/03/2012 07:58:49

PCP777
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1225 Posts

Response Posted - 02/03/2012 : 08:15:46

Honestly, I prefer targeted ads, I'd rather see sailing ads than ads for tampons. Both yahoo and gmail have really good junk mail filtering. I'm not sweating it.

Edited by - on

redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3476 Posts

Response Posted - 02/07/2012 : 04:52:52

I just got a text message on my cell phone for the "opportunity" to test the Iphone5 ..

Spam as a text message, on my phone at 6:46 am.... Yes I sweat it...

I'm payin for that spam...

Edited by - on

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9081 Posts

Response Posted - 02/07/2012 : 08:10:32

Spam texting is way over the line--I got my first a couple of days ago. Maybe Congress needs to kill that one. (...and I don't mean with an exemption for political solicitations!)

Edited by - on

redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3476 Posts

Response Posted - 02/07/2012 : 08:52:01

Yepper... time to put my congressman's personal cell number on fazebook.

Edited by - on

Ape-X
Admiral

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USA
662 Posts

Response Posted - 02/07/2012 : 10:02:42

we registered our cells on the do not call registry.

Edited by - on

redeye
Master Marine Consultant

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3476 Posts

Response Posted - 02/07/2012 : 14:44:36

I thought I had .. heck years ago, but thank you for mentioning it.. I'll go try that again.

regards.ray

Edited by - on

hewebb
Admiral

Members Avatar

USA
761 Posts

Response Posted - 02/08/2012 : 06:52:33

I run a program called CCleaner after every session on the internet. Also, with Earthlink you can block any sender before it gets to your computer and my block list is extensive. I am not my any means a computer expert but this combination seems to work.

Edited by - on

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