Below is a link to an advertisement many of you have either seen or seen something very similar to. Free ringtones sent right to your phone! It features a cute picture of a puppy listening to ear phones. The cute puppy distracts from the fact that there is no actual information about where these ringtones are coming from, only a flashing button that says “free download, click here!” If you didn’t know any better, this would seem like a great deal, but anyone who frequently surfs the web would know better than to click on the button. Sites like this that don’t give you any information or any sort of source to fall back on usually do one of two things- inject virus’s into your computer or convince you to give them some sort of contact information (or worse- credit card information), and then make your life a living hell by spamming you and forcing you to have to cancel your cards because there is no number or organization to call to retract your participation. Stay away from sites like these!
http://adserver.adreactor.com/servlet/click/zone?zid=31&cid=1313&mid=2290&pid=53&default=false&random=98613918×tamp=20100929152815&test=false&custom1=&custom2=&referrer=http%3A%2F%2Fairmp3.net%2Fsubparts%2Fad2iframe.php%3Fa%3D%26t%3D&redirect=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bearshare.com%2Fdownloadmusic%2F%3Fappid%3D133
I have seen many sites like the ones you have described here. Often times they are advertised on the sides of many popular websites or search pages. They either put something cute in the picture (like the puppy you mentioned) or put some sort of flashy image to catch your attention. Not to mention, the word “Free” is almost always seen across the advertisement to get people to click on them. I did not click on the specific site you provided because I have had family members get viruses on their computers from doing so. My dad’s lack of computer knowledge and viruses lead to him nearly entering in credit card information in a site like this for a cheap advertised product. Luckily, we caught him before he did so. Otherwise, I am sure his credit card information would have been stolen just as you mentioned. This example is a wonderful because it is so commonly seen on the internet today.
ReplyDeleteHeyy!! I also didn't click your link but for sure I definitely know what you're talking about. I see those links all the times on many different websites. Links talking about free thing such as free ring tones, free phone, free gift cards, and other things which we can get for free just by adding in our email and even our credit card information to pay for shipping. I know people who actually fallen for one of these sites. They signed up for a product that would be sent to them for free as long as they paid for shipping. What they didn't know was that it was a month to month thing where they would get shipped the same product each month. The first month was free, but every month after that the product was $60. They charged my friends credit card without him even knowing.
ReplyDeleteI always see many ads about receiving free ringtones. They are one of the most annoying ads on the web. I get easily distracted every time I see one. Sometimes you never know if clicking in to these ads lead to viruses or money scams. The ringtone ads can scam you and take many private information. Although they advertise free ringtones, the ad might charge money and eventually add up on to your phone bill. I remember when people I knew would often buy ringotnes online and getting charged a lot of money. I too did not want to click on your ad as a security precaution for my computer.
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