Products > Computers
Do you often see people google for each and every URL all the time?
Zbig:
My pet peeve since browsers with unified search/address bar became commonplace is users not typing the Fully Qualified Domain Name / proper URL but just typing the generic name of the service (e.g. "gmail") instead and then letting the browser perform a full-blown web search (in most cases using Google) just to click the first search result on the top that takes them to "gmail.com".
My GF keeps doing that and my attempts at explaining the difference and the risks posed by malicious SEOs promoting a phishing (or otherwise malicious) site to the top of the search results all failed. She doesn't know the difference and she doesn't care. Should I give up and accept that the Internet usage has changed and things like that are just minor technicalities that only bother the borderline autistic nerd types like myself anymore?
PTR_1275:
What’s even worse is seeing people go to google and typing the whole website into the search bar including the http://www.
Ian.M:
Unfortunately, the Google search sites, and Chromium based, and other browsers typically work hard to avoid showing you the full URL nowadays. URLs are for geeks, allegedly confuse users, and direct use of them doesn't permit any opportunity to cram 3rd party advertising down your throat!
Just about all you can do is make sure that any browser you are responsible for has its status bar turned on, and attempt to teach your users to hover on links and check the actual URL displayed in the status bar is as expected. However that's a thankless task, isn't foolproof due to scripts that rewrite links on click, and will be unlikely to make you popular even if the user in question has already personally lost $1000 by clicking malicious links. If it isn't absolutely essential to attempt to change user behaviour, don't even try!
magic:
--- Quote from: Zbig on April 30, 2020, 12:29:44 pm ---My GF keeps doing that.
Should I give up?
--- End quote ---
Yes, definitely dump her >:D
And really, you haven't seen it all until you see somebody clicking the 'home page' button to bring up some start page thingy with a google box on it and type gmail.com into the google box. :palm:
Mr. Scram:
--- Quote from: Zbig on April 30, 2020, 12:29:44 pm ---My pet peeve since browsers with unified search/address bar became commonplace is users not typing the Fully Qualified Domain Name / proper URL but just typing the generic name of the service (e.g. "gmail") instead and then letting the browser perform a full-blown web search (in most cases using Google) just to click the first search result on the top that takes them to "gmail.com".
My GF keeps doing that and my attempts at explaining the difference and the risks posed by malicious SEOs promoting a phishing (or otherwise malicious) site to the top of the search results all failed. She doesn't know the difference and she doesn't care. Should I give up and accept that the Internet usage has changed and things like that are just minor technicalities that only bother the borderline autistic nerd types like myself anymore?
--- End quote ---
Using the FQDN is also a risk as malicious actors claim very similar domain names and host copycat websites or drive-by malware. I'd say using a search engine is a decent way of protecting yourself against that.
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