Be Careful of What You Click On!!

The impetus for creating this thread was the discovery by Moderator [kolkh] of a member (since BANNED) attempting to place a potentially malicious web-link on our forum in the guise of a plea for help on a forum registration problem. Unfortunately, we have to deal with potential scammers, spammers, and other people with "nothing else better to do" from time-to-time here. It's a part of what your SiennaChat Mod-Squad does behind-the-scenes to help maintain the integrity and usability of your forum.

As a reminder to all of our members and guests, please be VERY CAREFUL when you see a link to ANY website wherever you might be on the Internet. Verify that the link actually goes to where it is supposed to or claims to go to (it is very easy to "say/write" one thing and "link" to another...see just TWO examples of how it can be done below). Do not blindly follow/click on "blind" links (where you cannot actually see WHERE the link is going). And if it is a place you have never heard of before or are suspicious about, RESEARCH IT FIRST. Think of it as a stranger leading you down a dark alley or into the wilderness. It might be perfectly fine/safe, but it might not....

EXAMPLE:
1. Google
2. [url]http://www.google.com/[/url]
The above links look like they will lead you to Google, but in fact one leads to Yahoo and one leads to Microsoft instead.

If you come across any suspicious links or messages from other members, please report it and bring it to our attention. You can also immediately post a warning in response to the offending post to warn other members that come across it after you do. Of course, it will be "after the fact", but hopefully it will keep a few people from potential harm before we are able to take care of it behind-the-scenes.

Just like you can potentially catch some diseases by simply touching or breathing/ingesting something in the real world, your computer can catch some bad-things just by simply clicking on/viewing some bad websites/links. BE CAREFUL OF WHAT YOU CLICK ON.

Most web-browsers allow you to see a link your mouse cursor is hovering over. It will usually appear at the lower portion of the open browser window, or perhaps in a pop-up/bubble/tag. However, sometimes the link does not reveal itself due to the way the link is "coded". Don't just rely on a "description" of the link, you want the ACTUAL link (URL) itself. Sometimes, you can [right-click] on the link and [copy] it to the [clipboard] or any text document so you can then view the link.

I have also started a thread regarding Computer Security. Please share any tips and experiences you might have...
Try here: http://siennachat.com/forum/index.php/topic,838.0.html

And remember...
BE CAREFUL OF WHAT YOU CLICK ON!!

YMMV.
Good Luck!! 8)