Mac users served info-stealer malware through Google ads • Hacker News Board

Re: Mac users served info-stealer malware through Google ads

#21

Post by angoragoats » Sat, Jun 29, 2024, 10:23 AM UTC

thfuran wrote: post #20

angoragoats wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, it isn’t. And comparing ad blocking to theft of actual physical items is absolutely wild. You must realize that they’re completely different, right? Under your reasoning, I’d just argue that ads are a blight on the web, and steal from me by deliberately and knowingly wasting my computer’s resources and attempting to serve me malware. What do we do now? Whose right not to be stolen from wins out?

>And comparing ad blocking to theft of actual physical items is absolutely wild. You must realize that they’re completely different, right? Serving a page costs money. Whether a physical good is exchanged isn't particularly relevant. >I’d just argue that ads are a blight on the web, and steal from me by deliberately and knowingly wasting my computer’s resources and attempting to serve me malware. What do we do now? W…

> But claiming that the ads are theft is far more of a reach then claiming ad blockers are.

[citation needed]

It’s exactly the same. The electricity used to render the ad (which sometimes will contain video, animations, crypto miners, and other undesirable garbage) costs me real money. If they don’t want me to block ads, stop serving me ads with garbage in them.

> advertisers generally aren't trying to serve you malware

My friend, you are commenting on an article about an advertiser deliberately serving malware.

Re: Mac users served info-stealer malware through Google ads

#22

Post by Kingince » Sat, Jun 29, 2024, 12:18 PM UTC

thfuran wrote: post #15

titusjohnson wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Adblocking does not constitute "theft" under even the most strained comparison. Just because the post office keeps putting trash in my mailbox doesn't mean it's theft for me to only keep the letters I care about. Throwing ads/spam/trash into the bin instead of keeping it in my house is not theft.

>Adblocking does not constitute "theft" under even the most strained comparison. As long as you accept that things like walking into a restaurant bathroom and taking a roll or two of toilet paper or going to a bank to take one of the pens don't constitute theft under even the most strained comparison. Using an ad-supported site with an adblocker is imposing costs on a service provider by abusing a service provided un…

And when an ad on one of these ad-supported site infects my device with malware, putting my financial security and, potentially, my livelihood at risk, is said website going to reimburse me for any resulting losses?

Re: Mac users served info-stealer malware through Google ads

#23

Post by thfuran » Sat, Jun 29, 2024, 12:58 PM UTC

Kingince wrote: post #22

thfuran wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Adblocking does not constitute "theft" under even the most strained comparison. As long as you accept that things like walking into a restaurant bathroom and taking a roll or two of toilet paper or going to a bank to take one of the pens don't constitute theft under even the most strained comparison. Using an ad-supported site with an adblocker is imposing costs on a service provider by abusing a service provided un…

And when an ad on one of these ad-supported site infects my device with malware, putting my financial security and, potentially, my livelihood at risk, is said website going to reimburse me for any resulting losses?

Not if you don't sue them for damages.

Re: Mac users served info-stealer malware through Google ads

#24

Post by thfuran » Sat, Jun 29, 2024, 1:09 PM UTC

angoragoats wrote: post #21

thfuran wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>And comparing ad blocking to theft of actual physical items is absolutely wild. You must realize that they’re completely different, right? Serving a page costs money. Whether a physical good is exchanged isn't particularly relevant. >I’d just argue that ads are a blight on the web, and steal from me by deliberately and knowingly wasting my computer’s resources and attempting to serve me malware. What do we do now? W…

> But claiming that the ads are theft is far more of a reach then claiming ad blockers are. [citation needed] It’s exactly the same. The electricity used to render the ad (which sometimes will contain video, animations, crypto miners, and other undesirable garbage) costs me real money. If they don’t want me to block ads, stop serving me ads with garbage in them. > advertisers generally aren't trying to serve you malw…

I meant the ad service with whom the site does business. They're just negligent, not intentionally serving the malicious ads. Yes, somebody somewhere deliberately paid to get the ad served.

Re: Mac users served info-stealer malware through Google ads

#25

Post by angoragoats » Sat, Jun 29, 2024, 1:59 PM UTC

thfuran wrote: post #24

angoragoats wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> But claiming that the ads are theft is far more of a reach then claiming ad blockers are. [citation needed] It’s exactly the same. The electricity used to render the ad (which sometimes will contain video, animations, crypto miners, and other undesirable garbage) costs me real money. If they don’t want me to block ads, stop serving me ads with garbage in them. > advertisers generally aren't trying to serve you malw…

I meant the ad service with whom the site does business. They're just negligent, not intentionally serving the malicious ads. Yes, somebody somewhere deliberately paid to get the ad served.

> They're just negligent

Ah, yeah, just a little harmless negligence. In that case, I’ll keep blocking all their ads, and feel 100% morally and ethically in the right.

Edit: and in the case of this article, the ad service is Google, and the site serving the ads is Google.com. Not a great look for a trillion dollar company.

For a company of this size, not taking steps to prevent all malicious ads from being created before they’re even served once is a deliberate choice they’ve made, which I would argue amounts to Google deliberately serving its customers malware.