This summer Google started actively trying to warn users away from
dangerous places on the Internet. If you try to click on a link
furnished by a Google search, you might get a screen that screams,
"Warning--the site you are about to visit may harm your computer! You
can learn more about malware and how to protect yourself at
StopBadware.org." Eventually, a general warning will be replaced by
detailed information on a given site's record of distributing code that
aims to steal data, send spam, or generate pop-up ads. Such records are
being compiled by StopBadware.org, a creation of researchers at Harvard
Law School's Berkman Center for Internet and Society and the University
of Oxford (with the backing of Google and other companies).
But
given that a mini-industry in "search optimization" has sprung up as
online companies try to get their sites ranked higher in Google search
returns, how long before malware purveyors create an industry in
malware-detection-avoidance optimization?
Comments