AplusWebMaster
Topic Starter
FYI…
- http://www.websense.com/securitylabs/blog/….php?BlogID=175
Feb 26 2008 - "…A growing number of technical resources are allowing users to bypass Internet filtering. These types of services, such as Anonymous Proxies (known also as Web Proxies), are becoming very popular for bypassing Internet blocking. But are these services themselves always safe? The answer is no.
Just about anyone can set up an anonymous proxy and advertise it openly for others to use. Web Proxy lists are easy to find, with a simple lookup on any search engine. These proxy services have the possibility of being hostile, intentionally set up to eavesdrop data flow and able to steal passwords to any site your users might access, including online banking, PayPal, and social networking sites like MySpace… We installed a free, popular Web Proxy and monitored the traffic… the traffic was logged, and data collected, revealing Web sites accessed, along with user names and passwords… Even though sites you log in to are secure and encrypted, that doesn’t mean that an Anonymous Proxy Server you’re using is also set up to be secure. Your traffic could be in clear text going from the browser to the Proxy Server. This means your privacy can be invaded. Email and Instant Messages through MSN, AIM, and Google Talk–or any other data going through–could be read. Be aware that someone could be watching your users’ every move and could be gathering your information to log in into your accounts, perhaps for financial gain. Thus, bypassing filtering through proxy sites can open your organization [or home PC] to a variety of harmful behaviors."
(Screenshots available at the URL above.)
- http://www.websense.com/securitylabs/blog/….php?BlogID=175
Feb 26 2008 - "…A growing number of technical resources are allowing users to bypass Internet filtering. These types of services, such as Anonymous Proxies (known also as Web Proxies), are becoming very popular for bypassing Internet blocking. But are these services themselves always safe? The answer is no.
Just about anyone can set up an anonymous proxy and advertise it openly for others to use. Web Proxy lists are easy to find, with a simple lookup on any search engine. These proxy services have the possibility of being hostile, intentionally set up to eavesdrop data flow and able to steal passwords to any site your users might access, including online banking, PayPal, and social networking sites like MySpace… We installed a free, popular Web Proxy and monitored the traffic… the traffic was logged, and data collected, revealing Web sites accessed, along with user names and passwords… Even though sites you log in to are secure and encrypted, that doesn’t mean that an Anonymous Proxy Server you’re using is also set up to be secure. Your traffic could be in clear text going from the browser to the Proxy Server. This means your privacy can be invaded. Email and Instant Messages through MSN, AIM, and Google Talk–or any other data going through–could be read. Be aware that someone could be watching your users’ every move and could be gathering your information to log in into your accounts, perhaps for financial gain. Thus, bypassing filtering through proxy sites can open your organization [or home PC] to a variety of harmful behaviors."
(Screenshots available at the URL above.)