Shame on you! Report: Users lazier than ever about security practices

Lady Fitzgerald said:

lehnerus2000 said:

Where do websites like Facebook fit into this equation?
They seem to change their policies (and Privacy settings) every few weeks.

The only possible reasons for this behaviour are:

• To bamboozle the average user, so that they can't set their accounts up correctly
• To convince them that there is no point doing it

Or convince people not to use the site, period.

That only works on smart people.

Gary said:

I do not believe that Linux users are any smarter than Windows users.

The default security position in Linux is:

"Go Away! You're not allowed to do that!"

You have to be more knowledgeable to use Linux, because you need to "hit" the Terminal a lot more often than you need to "hit" the Command Prompt in Windows.

I'm annoyed by how often I have to open the Terminal and type "sudo blah".
It's so tempting to just login as "root".

Things of note to me.
1. We have a new group of people using some sort of computer. They are the poke and pray people. They use mostly social websites and have no idea what a secure computer, tablet or phone is. They don't want to know because they are so wise what else could they ever learn. As long as they can steal some movies, music, games and a program every now and then the computing world is perfect in their minds.
Then bang their systems gets slammed with infections and then of course they point figures at everybody else for their problem. All they did was the normal stuff like P2P for cracked movies, a torrent every now and then for a cracked program or game. You know the normal stuff.
Nobody told them to have a anti virus, firewall and a properly set up router and wifi. Why did the world keep this a secret from me? It's the worlds fault this happened to me.

2. Honest people who know that security is important but just get conned and get this and that programs by some self proclaimed great website. They are not lazy about security. They just haven't found the proper websites to guide them.
Like this great Windows 7 Forum and if I may (Bleeping Computer) (ZD NET) (The Register) and many more.

Group #1 I don't believe we or anybody can help them. They know to much to be helped.
Group #2 can be helped if we just get them to this Forum. Hopefully with the amount of members we have we can do just that. Be boastful about this Forum as often as you can and to as many as you can. We are here to help and learn.

Just my opinion.
Layback Bear.

I'm guessing people are getting lazier on average when it comes to computer security. Reasons being: there are more and a wider variety of people using personal computer like devices, and they are using them for more social functions that require more log-ins, user IDs, and so on, so they're just using the same passwords for everything and using simple ones that can be gotten from any number of places they frequent on-line.

But yeah, no AV, no hardware/software FW (I&O), and so on, certainly won't help either.

I would tend to think that most active computer/internet users these days typically need at least three sets of unique user IDs and PWs that they occasionally change, but most likely only use one, maybe two that they never change (provided they don't forget them, that is).

The main problem as I see it is that users are either undereducated (when it comes to "digital security," including responsible computer/internet use) and/or too lazy. Is this their fault, the service/software provider's fault (for not providing enough info nor conveying the necessity), or both?

I've nothing to hide and some of the things I do are probably so BORING to anybody else that I really would take pity on anybody having to monitor my emails / activities etc. - Even if they wanted to spy on what happens in my bedroom - I'm sure there are other sites where they could fulfil their sexual desires / fetishes etc much more interestingly.

You may or may not have anything of particular interest, other than just using your identity, account information, and e-mail addresses, which is likely what most malware/hackers and the like are after, really. It isn't about you, it's about what they can use you to do for them.

It scares me how little people care about security....my better halfs mom is just like that.
She uses passwords that consist of 4 to 5 letters. No caps or nothing. When I tried to explain to her how dangerous this is, she just complains about how many stupid passwords she has to create and how she can never remember them. She hates online accounts that half the time she just creates a new one. Doesn't even try the forgot password link. Just creates a new account. Then gets frustrated when she looses everything. I have tried warning her that having weak passwords and not caring about security will affect her one day, such as money getting stolen, etc. But guess what? She says oh well the bank or whatever will protect me. It just frustrates me beyond belief. If you are not going to care, you deserve to get stuff stolen.

Especially when I offer to spend a hour with people for FREE to teach them how to secure/update their software and or online accounts. People just frustrate me to no end. Everyone's going nutz about the nsa, yet they do not seem to care if thieves can get into it? Makes no sense.
Anyway, Its not just my better halfs mom, its also like 4 other people I know as well. Scary.
People just expect everything to be done for them anymore. They don't care or want to take responsibility. I might try to use that car analogy to see if they get it. Because they do change their oil, etc.