11-08-2003, 04:00 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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Is Your Router Spamming You?
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/69/33858.html
"The marketing geniuses at Belkin, the consumer networking vendor, have dreamed up a new form of spam - ads served to your desktop, by way of its wireless router."
You can read the whole sordid thread at Google Groups, one an apology from Eric at Belkin.
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We at Belkin apologize for the recent trouble our customers have experienced with the wireless router/browser redirect issue. We unintentionally overlooked the effect this feature would have. We never intended to compromise the trust of our customers, and we never intend to do so in the future.<br /><br />We are taking responsibility for this, and we will be offering firmware fixes early next week. We do not have exact details yet as we are still working on them, and will continue to work on them over the weekend. What we can tell you now is that each Router's firmware that incorporates Parental Control as an option will be changed.
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<br /><br />Huh? :confused totally: <i>"We unintentionally overlooked the effect this feature would have. We never intended to compromise the trust of our customers, and we never intend to do so in the future."</i> How could you unintentionally overlook the effect of the feature? The intended effect was to redirect their users to a sales pitch by Belkin. Either they are colossally stupid or just poor liars. I'll not be buying any Belkin hardware anytime soon. :evil: I hope the morons that proposed and approved of this idea are collecting unemployment by now.
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11-08-2003, 04:18 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 327
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8O WOW!, just WOW! :?
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11-08-2003, 04:26 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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The more I think about this, the more ticked off I am. Could you imagine if your Pocket PC was periodically redirected to the OEM's site for advertising when browsing? :2gunfire:
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11-08-2003, 04:53 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 102
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Well, that might explain why the Belkin I previously had was so busy all the time! I would not even be on my network and the activity lights would be flashing like crazy. It was probably out buying stuff on my credit card. :wink:
I ended up returning it for a SMC Barricade g which has been fantastic.
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11-08-2003, 05:34 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 330
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Surley Belkin have broken some law somewhere or should compensate users at least for stealing their bandwidth.
We have just bought a load of Belkin stuff in work and I was even recomending a Belkin USB bluetooth donge to someone the orther day I will have to rethink who we buy from.
I just can't believe they have been so stupid and think that no one would have noticed.
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11-08-2003, 06:08 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,162
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I have a problem with them calling this a "feature" as if it's something designed to benefit the user.
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"I know this feature might be misunderstood and might PO some people. I know the manual could do a better job explaining it. "
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I think people do understand this feature - they just reasonably don't like it and see it as a step down a slippery slope where any company thinks it's okay to hijack a system to advertise on it.
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11-08-2003, 07:23 PM
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Theorist
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 267
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GUYS!
Just do this and guarranteed no spam or whatsoever
change your router's IP to 10.0.0.1
the old nonroutable ip is pretty hackable nowadays!
:mrgreen:
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11-08-2003, 07:25 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,213
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Just when I think marketers have sunk as low as they can possibly go, they come up with some new slimeball idea like this and manage to sink even lower.
I'm just waiting for the day when some cracker figures out a way to overwrite the firmware of routers and install some kind of malicious software on them. Many newer consumer routers are already running highly specialized embedded versions of Linux. It's only a matter of time. I can see it now... visit a Web site that installs some malicious software on your PC that then scans your LAN for a router it can mess with. If it finds one, it overwrites the router's firmware with its own code, reboots the router, and chaos ensues.
--Dave
__________________
Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are (usually) unnecessary.
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11-08-2003, 07:28 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,041
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I think Belkin has been a company with very solid technology. I've been very pleased with everything I have ever bought from them.
This mistake looks to be the work of a Marketing newbie and hopefully, that person will learn by this horrible mistake as well as others who were thinking the same thing.
After years of good service and solid products, I'll forgive them this time.
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11-08-2003, 07:29 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 1,185
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I can't believe 27% of the votes would actually be willing to even consider doing business with such a company again. It's enough of a problem from people I'd NEVER (Well, maybe if I do start getting personal performance complaints  ops: ) do business with.
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Linear Mode
