Welcome to the Fast-Air Tech Talk newsletter. The Tech Talk newsletter is a free service for all Fast-Air customers. Please feel encouraged to suggest newsletter topics.

The World Wide Web provides humans many benefits. Yet the explosion of sharing knowledge and information has introduced caveats too. Specifically, when and how to trust that sharing.

Nothing new here. This is a challenge humans have faced for thousands of years.

Humans long have demonstrated an ability to believe just about anything. The process begins by teaching children to believe in tooth fairies, Easter Bunnies, and Santa Claus. At one time people believed the world rested on an infinite number of turtles, the earth was flat, the earth was the center of the universe, or the moon was made of green cheese.

History amplifies this fundamental flaw to be fatal and destructive. Wars are started and sustained by misinformation. The misinformation continues after wars end because “history is written by the winners.”

The modern day web exasperates this foundational human flaw. Conspiracy theories, falsehoods, and twisting of facts all propagate just as they always have throughout human circles, but at speeds of milliseconds rather than days, weeks, months, or years.

We now live in an age of click-bait and FUD. Click-bait is a phenomenon of the web, driven relentlessly by advertising revenues. FUD — Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt is a misinformation strategy.

While click-bait is a new term, the concept is not. In the past click-bait was known as sensationalism and yellow journalism.

FUD is hardly a new phenomenon. FUD has been used for thousands of years by many people. FUD long has been popular with people trying to hoodwink other people into believing something. Or by people insecure with their own beliefs. FUD is a favorite strategy of people with agendas.

Click-bait and FUD are relatively easy to identify on the web. A web search often reveals many articles all using the same or similar headline. The actual article content often is an exact copy-and-paste of an original press release with no additional useful information. Often a reader realizes after only reading the first paragraph that the article is click-bait and FUD. Reading the last paragraph of such articles often reveals the true nature of an alleged problem — almost as an after thought.

Click-bait and FUD play a role in understanding computer security too. A significant number of discovered security flaws target unlikely or exceptional usage cases. That is, somewhat like the parlor game of Twister, most people never use a computer in the manner required to enable the security exploit. Similarly, most security flaws are fixed in a timely manner. Most computer security issues are the result of bad habits. That is, while there is a need for sharing computer security information, there is no need for hype.

Anti-virus and other security software vendors are known for this kind of hype. They use this hype with the hope of selling their software, most of which is unnecessary with good computer habits.

There are exceptions. The phenomenon of the Internet of Things is a security nightmare.

Headlines nowadays are about generating advertising revenues more than reporting news or sharing information. Often headlines are misleading. Often headlines do not match the actual article or report. Instead headlines are written to bait viewers in order to maximize advertising revenues.

The result of click-bait and FUD is a loss of credibility.

What to do? Online click-bait and FUD are favorite tactics of drama queens. Separating the wheat from the chaff is not too hard. Remain rooted in reality. Remember the fable about The Boy Who Cried Wolf? Do not believe everything you read on the web. Read with skepticism. Read between the lines. Separate fact and fiction. Balance curiosity with reason. Live a quiet and peaceable life.

“Let’s be careful out there.”

Technical trivia: Isaac Asimov is well known for his Three Laws of Robotics.

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

In a later story, Asimov introduced the Zeroth Law:

A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.

Next issue: Basic Home Networking

I confess that in 1901, I said to my brother Orville that man would not fly for fifty years. Ever since, I have distrusted myself and avoided all predictions. — Wilbur Wright, 1908.

Video

• Author
• Recent Posts

Backwoods Geek

Backwoods Geek wrote his first computer program in 1977. He started using desktop computers in 1982 to write training and job aids. These days his home includes routers, switches, computers, a home theater PC, a laptop, and bluetooth phones. His professional career includes instrumentation and controls, computers, industrial training, technical writing, and teaching computer classes. Pastimes include sitting on the front porch, observing wildlife, cutting firewood, reading, watching movies, and tinkering with computers. He is uncomfortable around morning people until afternoon, likes dry and off-the-wall humor, and usually tells jokes with a straight face. He is a believer in the old adage that, "No matter where you go, there you are."

Latest posts by Backwoods Geek (see all)

• Free Gift Phishing Scams (Notice 2020-001) - January 15, 2020
• Tech Support Phone Scam (Notice 2019-001) - March 14, 2019
• VPNFilter Router Malware (Notice 2018-007) - May 30, 2018