Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker • Hacker News Board

Re: Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker

#31

Post by bhaney » Thu, Dec 22, 2022, 6:29 PM UTC

gjsman-1000 wrote: post #16

bhaney wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why does adding DRM change something's status under DMCA? Either way, I don't even compile Widevine into my browser so I guess I'd just be locked out of those sites.

DMCA Section 1201 criminalizes breaking any “technological protection measures” of any kind, unless there is an exception for it on a list decided by a librarian that changes every 3 years. It’s absurd.

I guess my question is more specifically why something like Widevine falls under this, but commonly used anti-adblocking scripts (that are still regularly blocked by ad-blockers) don't. Are anti-adblockers on that exception list you refer to?

Re: Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker

#32

Post by plastiquebeech » Thu, Dec 22, 2022, 6:34 PM UTC

officeplant wrote: post #30

WirelessGigabit wrote: post #29

Another reason why browsers other than Safari should allow extensions on iOS. Using Firefox does not allow me to use the same protection as Safari itself. Ridiculous.

In my experience even the add-ons I can find for Safari on iOS rarely do what they say they will do. Nothing ever works as well as ublock origin on a desktop browser and it so frustrating. Having mobile firefox + ublock is one of the few things I still miss about android.

Same. I tried to switch to iOS about a year ago, but I ended up returning the device after spending over $50 on highly-rated ad/script blockers for Safari, and finding that none of them really worked.

Back on Android, my daily life is blissfully bereft of ads, except when I visit somewhere with live TV. It's a shame, because Apple makes some great pieces of hardware, but I won't be back until they loosen up on controlling the software that I'm able to run on my devices.

Re: Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker

#33

Post by LarryMullins » Thu, Dec 22, 2022, 6:41 PM UTC

blitzar wrote: post #10

agtorre wrote: post #2

I've definitely noticed family being far less likely to be scammed or click fake ads with ad blocker on.

Given the prevalence in the real world of scams and fake ads - is there a danger that hiding them from people just means that they are more likely to fall for them when the inevitable happens. Any time I hear of a new scam, I tell people about the method so they can look out for it. In the heat of the moment the "IRS tax problem call" or "its me your child I have been in an accident can you send me some money" can be…

> Given the prevalence in the real world of scams and fake ads - is there a danger that hiding them from people just means that they are more likely to fall for them when the inevitable happens.

Strong disagree. Once you've avoided ads for a while, the ads that do slip through seem bizarre and flagrantly manipulative. Ads work best on people who are accustomed to ads, to whom ads are normalized. Once you denormalize ads, they become less effective because their manipulative nature comes across plain as day.

Re: Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker

#34

Post by Nextgrid » Thu, Dec 22, 2022, 6:49 PM UTC

thatguy0900 wrote: post #3

What would the end result be if a significant percentage of people started using ad blockers? I mean like 50-60%,enough to make the current "free" web non viable to run. Litigation against the end users? What happens if I'm legally required to view an ad that gives me malware?

There will be more pressure to develop an interoperable, easy to use micropayment system so that content worth paying for can survive. Trash whose only purpose is to get you to watch ads and that nobody would otherwise pay even a cent for will go away but that won't be missed.

Re: Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker

#35

Post by livueta » Thu, Dec 22, 2022, 8:54 PM UTC

agtorre wrote: post #2

I've definitely noticed family being far less likely to be scammed or click fake ads with ad blocker on.

One of the many reasons I hate Microsoft with a burning passion is that they got my grandma tech support scammed.

I had Firefox with ublock origin configured as the default browser and (thought I had) purged IE/Edge. She was fine with this setup for years.

One day, an update swapped the default browser, she saw a deceptive ad, and it went predictably from there.

Re: Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker

#36

Post by anotherevan » Thu, Dec 22, 2022, 9:50 PM UTC

Showing yet again they are mis-named. They are not Ad Blockers, they are a security device called an HTML Firewall.

Re: Even the FBI says you should use an ad blocker

#37

Post by albertopv » Thu, Dec 22, 2022, 10:24 PM UTC

Let's add that Google web search show ads on top that (at the moment, for me) are almost undistinguishable from real results (a 'sponsored' label is shown, but nothing else). Dark pattern everywhere. All ads business is a wanna be scam.