I am trying to send a private message on here and keep getting a "Captcha" page. Is this new on here or is something wrong here?
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I am trying to send a private message on here and keep getting a "Captcha" page. Is this new on here or is something wrong here?
It's been going on for a couple of weeks now. Apparently some new login and posting security measures have been put in place.Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
Thanks; the weird thing is that when I click "I am not a robot" it automatically goes back to my profile but I don't think it sends my PM.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Honky Tonk
We are sorry for the inconvenience but allow us to explain why. [And why we should all press Congress to pass legislation to both fight and penalize these outlaws described below who cause so much cost to our economy.]
Consequently you may face random "security checks" to prove you are human.
Issue: Two or three weeks we sustained a large scale spambot assault. Bogus new member registrations were coming in at 20 an hour and bogus contact messages were flooding us at up to one hundred an hour. This caused us to switch off new member registration and limit the contact form to members only until we could beat off the attack.
Cause: Increasing powerful bot programs, some now AI-driven, are blowing past human verification checks, even traditional scrambled letter Captcha codes.
Actions: We have subscribed CloudFlare, a server traffic filtering service, that spots and blocks most, but not all, spam traffic and allows internet address blocking services. Consequently we have blocked all traffic from Eastern Europe, South Asia and China from which we were receiving large amounts of traffic but, as you know, none of it participating on the forum. This has greatly reduced our spam traffic to where we have been able to turn back on registrations and the contact form to all. But we're out $20 a month for the service.
We have also returned to using Google's "I am not a Robot" for human verification but even that may be slightly compromised or the remaining attackers are utilizing real humans in low wage counties to break through. Those that get through tend to stumble on the last hurdle we employ which asks: "Tell something special about Detroit that let's us know you are not a robot trying to create a fake account. For instance a Detroit place, Detroit celebrity, Detroit food, Detroit institution, Detroit history... "
Conclusion: We always are looking for better solutions in this war so we ask for your patience and understanding. Thank you.
Thanks for the update. Please let us know whenever you win this battle in the war. ;)
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
Maybe you really ARE a robot!
What should be outlawed is any use of any service from G which is known spyware. They track everything anyone does with the express intent of gathering and selling information.
Man, they really ARE getting good at AI!Quote:
Originally Posted by Honky Tonk
Thanks for the update, Lowell, I was somewhat confused because it was the first time I ran into it on here And the page I landed on was asking me to run malware scans on my computer. I did it just to be on the safe side and have nothing infection-wise
That's been going on for years, before the internet and before Google. Newspapers sold subscriber information to other interested parties. You order a magazine subscription and three other "trial subscriptions" show up. Make a donation to the Biafrin Baby Charity, and other charities show up in your mailbox. Now with all things being electronic and instantaneous, a lot more ground gets covered more quickly.Quote:
Originally Posted by Meddle
Huh?Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
.............
G is FAR more insidious than that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Honky Tonk
G has the ability to know exactly where you are every moment of the day if you don't take steps to prevent them from being able to.
They know what you spend, where and which bank it comes from. They know what you use, what you drive, what you eat and who you associate with.
Websites that use their tracking tools like Captcha and Analytics only enable them further.
Damn, that wasn't supposed to get out...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Meddle
It is supposed to be "and the page I landed on". I was doing voice to text on my Ipad and I didn't edit.Quote:
Originally Posted by Meddle
Not only that, but those phone calls you used to get trying to give you a vacation to Orlando or the Bahamas if you will only sit through a vacuum cleaner demonstration? You weren't randomly picked from a phone book. All those magazine scrips, donations, etc got you put into a book that was in address order and sold to companies who wanted to target geographic areas,.Quote:
Originally Posted by Honky Tonk
Quote:
Originally Posted by Meddle
I'm very familiar how all that works. But to be fair, Google isn't working alone. It's like the old Monkee's song "It's a little bit me, and a little bit you, too". Is the tracking on your phone on? Do you use plastic instead of cash? Do you allow third party cookies when you visit websites? [[yes, they're only making your website visit experience "better") Google is free for the consumer, but you can't run an operation like that on charity. They make up the deficit by providing businesses with leads that, hopefully, will then lead to sales. Ever notice how sales sites you've been to appear on the DY sidebars? [[Lowell in 3, 2, 1...) It's how the world operates these days. Until the implants come along. You know, in case of emergencies, it allows "us" to help YOU.
"I am not a robot, I am a man!"
No, because I block all of that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Honky Tonk
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
Ipad has trouble interpreting robot voices.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
It seems to be that people have no concept at all about privacy and how intrusive these companies truly are:
"Facebook has become the latest tech giant to face scrutiny over its handling of users’ data, following a report that said the social media giant collected audio data and recordings from its users and transcribed it using third-party contractors."
"Amazon saw the initial round of flak for allowing contractors to manually review Alexa recordings without express user permission, forcing the company to add an opt-out to its Echo devices. Google also faced heat for allowing human review of audio data, along with Apple, which used contractors to listen to seemingly private Siri recordings. Microsoft also listened to some Skype calls made through the company’s app translation feature."
https://techcrunch.com/2019/08/13/fa...ut-permission/
It's no wonder Identity Theft is so rampant.
There's another story out today about Biometrics being hacked and data on millions of fingerprints stolen.
From Amazon workers eavesdrop on your talks with Alexa:Wait a minute. Doesn't that contradict the very meaning of "artificial intelligence"? Are they just dumbing down the definition of the term to the point that they can use it to sell what's neither artificial nor intelligent?Quote:
It's a reminder that artificial intelligence, a technology that lets computer programs learn, is often improved by human intervention.
They see you when you're sleeping. They know when your awake....Quote:
Originally Posted by Meddle
Tom Scott talks about the history of captcha: I'm Not A Robot. You can skip the ad at 5:10.
I was musing about clever ways to deal with bots and I remembered the Ship in a Bottle episode from Star Trek Next Generation.
If each of us replaced ourselves with a simulation then quietly snuck out the back door to a secret duplicate DetroitYES! then the bots could be left behind attacking the old DetroitYES! to their hearts content. Everybotty's happy!
Hey, dreams are free. ;)
DetroitYES! has slowed down significantly recently.
I doubt it's just me because there have been very few posts by others.
Is it the bots?
Is there anything we users can do to help, like squirt some Cheese Whiz into those little bot ears and set a match to it? ;)
It was horrible last night but this morning it seems much better. Did the powers that be perform some magic last night or just a reboot?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimaz
I've noticed DYes performance recover and relapse several times over the last few days so don't count it over just yet.Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
Too much security will slow things down. Had a new firewall installed yesterday and initially the down/upload speeds were horrific. A couple adjustments and they were back in the 94.5 mbps realm. Possibly someone needs to do some tweaking.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimaz
Update: I had tried using Cloudflare for spam mitigation--especially bogus bot registrations. That resulted in an excess of security challenges and wasn't stopping that many.
I experimented with switching it off for a week to see what the difference was. There was only a slight increase but the annoying excessive security challenges are gone, so I will be cancelling the subscription.
Thanks for the update.
It sounds like a very annoying problem. :[[
whew! makes me very glad that got back in/on before that happened. Thanks, Lowell, for the extra caution.
and call me a luddite - husband often does - but i'm not on other social media like facebook so i try to keep my personal info limited to more trusted sites like this. [[and the few sites that i AM on, i provide very little personal info.) super-luddite: last week, i ditched my cellphone because, frankly, i don't really need it and don't care to be tracked.
i spent 40+ years as an IT geek so i'm a bit familiar with how info gathering works and, thanks very much, but i'd prefer to be left out.
You're not alone. What bugs me is that new technology fails in ways unimaginable decades ago but most people just shrug it off as normal. Maybe that's what's driving all the retro fads among the younger set.Quote:
Originally Posted by mtm49269
what also bugs the jeebers out of me is all of the voice control and video that people allow into their homes. our cable company, dish, sent us a voice-command remote that has never left the box though we keep getting interrupts telling us that we need to "register" it. although they claim that it wouldn't be listening, the "benefit" of activating it isn't worth the possibility of them listening. as to alexa and the rest, NO THANK YOU!
and, while i understand the secure "feeling" one might get from online cameras through the house or at the front door, those can be hacked WAY too easily.
Regarding differentiating between bots and humans:
Earlier today I heard a report [[on NPR?) that it was recently discovered that bots tend to post at a constant rate whereas humans will increase their rate of posts proportional to their interest in the [[political) subject.
Also, the human responses diminished in length [[number of characters) proportional to their diminished interest in the topic whereas the bot retained a constant post length after the confrontation flurry had begun to subside.
I recall a story of a kidnapped young girl and they tracked her phones activities to find where all she had gone that day. ..I believe she was at some point even in the trunk of a car. so SOME tracking can be good for YOU if you come up missing. [[But the rest of the tracking is for THEMQuote:
Originally Posted by Honky Tonk
I tried a search for this problem, but maybe I could find help here.
I installed an ad blocker to try and avoid ad tracking. Now on this site, I get the DetoitYes ad blocking app/notice even though I made the donation and am logged in. Very annoying.
Also, why does Win10 put EVERY click on the apps list on the Edge browser? I now have several hundred to look through to try and close/uninstall an app. I can't find any help online, so I'm looking at you Jimaz and jcole.:cool:
So F##k Microsoft and they're confusing updates. Thank you.
I seldom use Edge, but I just opened it up and opened a ton of pages and none of them set up as an app. There is a button that asks if you want to open a page as an app, so make sure that you don't click that. I will continue to look at it and see if I find anything elseQuote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
I looked for that button and could not find it. But thanks anyway. Is Microsoft supposed to help or hinder us. They should just offer a basic version for us non-IT people.Quote:
I seldom use Edge, but I just opened it up and opened a ton of pages and none of them set up as an app. There is a button that asks if you want to open a page as an app, so make sure that you don't click that. I will continue to look at it and see if I find anything else
Also still getting this - Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking.
Lowell, do I have to send you a message or email to kindly remove this?
I'm logged in and donated.
Every click on Edge is saved as an app, which is now several hundred for me. Which one is the Adblocker is impossible to find.
jcole - I would use Firefox or Chrome, but Micros**t blocks and reverts to Edge as the default. AVG has also taken over my Firefox.
Everything internet is just piling on now. [[ex Long Beach State football).:[[:[[
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
Are you running Windows 10? You might want to uninstall AVG, and just use Windows Defender and Windows Firewall. I used to use AVG back in the day, then somewhere along the line it became very invasive. I removed it from a friend's laptop, brought Windows 10 up to date, [[patches and what not) turned on Defender and Firewall, and all the issues went away.
Also see if your ISP offers a security suite as part plan at no extra charge. I do both on different window 10 laptops.Quote:
Originally Posted by Honky Tonk
Like HT said one has Defender and Firewall the other Spectrum supplied Security Suite with windows firewall. Both ways have worked quite well.
My favorite box runs on Linux Ubuntu v. 20.04.2 LTS.
No need for security stuff. [[knock on wood) Just keep updated, which is soooo simple to do. This computer takes only 17 seconds to boot and ready to go.
Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking
I tried.:confused:
Thanks for all the information
I knew this was the place to go.
Windows should not be blocking you from changing your browser. You need to change your default. If you are using Win 10, go into settings, go to settings, select Apps, scroll down to Web Browser, click on that and select a different one, whether it's Firefox or Chrome and that should take care of the issue. But you have to have one of those installed as well as Edge.
Also, if you intend to uninstall AVG, go here and follow the directions.
https://support.avg.com/SupportArtic...pportType=home
I've had a little success with Duckduckgo but Edge is a problem.Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
Windows is all kind of screwed up.
Also see if your ISP offers a security suite as part plan at no extra charge. I do both on different window 10 laptops.
Like HT said one has Defender and Firewall the other Spectrum suppliedQuote:
Security Suite with windows firewall. Both ways have worked quite well.
I tried that and ended up with a laptop seizure. Windows is a scam.Quote:
My favorite box runs on Linux Ubuntu v. 20.04.2 LTS.
No need for security stuff. [[knock on wood) Just keep updated, which is soooo simple to do. This computer takes only 17 seconds to boot and ready to go.
It should work the same way. When you try to switch from Edge, you might see a pop up that says, "Before you go...give Edge another chance" Just click "switch anyway"Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
Also, where is the "apps" link that is showing hundreds of apps? Is it part of Windows or part of Edge?
My ISP is AT&T, and we know how bad that is. Dial up remembered.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1UY7eDRXrs
No, My bad - America Online is better.
I tried to snip it, but it wouldn't take. Yes, there are hundreds of entry's on my start up, for everything I ever clicked on.
Where are there hundreds of entries for everything you ever clicked? Under apps in your Settings for Windows 10 or in Edge where you click on the three dots up in the right hand corner or the browser?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
What are you trying to "snip" and how?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
Are you sure you aren't looking at History instead of Apps?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
My snipping tool on the toolbar. I use that instead of the "Print Screen".Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
And no, it's not the history, but listed as apps on my start menu.
And I don't want to try anything "Delete All" which could be another cluster f*ck.
Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking LOL!
Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking
Now I can't post any photo's on here with this warning.
Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking
The worst thing is an app calling itself App.:confused:
Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking
Just for good measure.
What is it: your start menu, your app list in Windows or your app list in Edge?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
It's just my start list/app list. Everything I click on is added to the list.
When I die - please delete everything on my hard drive. Except PornHub, I'm okay with that.:):);)
Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking Welcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingRWelcome to DetroitYES! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad Blocking
I still don't understand where you are seeing the list you are talking about; you have told me 3 different places so far. I also don't know why there is a large block of blue print at the bottom of your post. Try to do a screen print or something. Or right click on one of the "apps" and then click "unpin"
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
Joyful! Just as I'm ready to finally ditch one of my Apple units for a Windows-based laptop. I mostly use and software train on Macs [[going back many years, when just us 'artists and designers' types used them). But not an Apple 'fan boy' as they call the Mac-only devotees.
I've run labs running Mac and Windows - figuring out a many years back it's best to be fluent on both platforms!! Indeed Apple is getting increasingly annoying ala their fussy OS, esoteric connections [[no USB ports on their new laptops and the sky-high cost, etc ETC.). But to date, I have no browser issues and can connect to I want to as needed web-wise.
Still the third of a price Windows based lappy is calling my name...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigb23
Bumping...because I can't start a new thread.
Any one having issues with the forum over the past few days? Forbidden access to certain threads, dead links, etc?
BigB's Windows is all kinds of screwed up. I wouldn't let the convo here deter you from a Windows laptop.Quote:
Originally Posted by Zacha341
Only thing I've seen is those two threads on the main page "Anyone know this location". Are there any restrictions on the photos themselves causing the issue. Here is the error I get: "Forbidden
You do not have permission to access this document." Is it possible the pics have the wrong extension?Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeM
Yep, those are the ones. I thought maybe it was the parenthesis in the titles. I was able to view the thread by erasing the thread title part of the url.Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
And then I noticed none of the links at the top of the threads work for me. Like...I can't start a new thread. And the links in that row to New Posts, Private Messages, FAQ, Calendar, etc are dead. And the thread tree.
Try turning off your ad blocker if you have one.Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeM
Same two posts "Anyone know this location" throw a Forbidden message when you click on either of them.
Also the thread navigation bar at the top of the thread don't work; the ones at the bottom do.
This phrasing is covering some of the links at top of the thread; maybe interfering with the functions?
© AtDetroit LLC 2000 - 2021 unless otherwise specified. Please notify us of uncited proprietary content.
Something is amiss somewhere!!
NopeQuote:
Originally Posted by Jimaz
Noticed that too.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kathleen
I have the same problem whether using Chrome browser on a laptop or Samsung browser on my phone.
Well, just got an update to ChromeOS. Now, some of the menu links work when I'm not logged in to the forum, but when I log in, they go dead.
It took me forever to find Adblock plus to uninstall it because it's a browser extension instead of an app. I still got the DetroitYES popup after logging in, and after making an affordable donation, [[For me), before that, it seems an unknown Win 10 adblocker is the the culprit. I also contacted the Admin. I can't backtrack my whole Win 10 history to find the problem, so I'll just delete this site and find something comparable. I'll miss Ya'll.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimaz
Do you have Malwarebytes? They added an adblocker to that in the Chrome extension. Try killing that if you have it.Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeM
On your two threads: I backed out the titles to the thread number and can open both now, no problem. Very strange!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeM
And I discovered something new, at least to me; there's a test forum on here
https://www.detroityes.com/mb/forumd...-Test-Subforum
No Malwarebytes, no protection that I know of.
I don't really know how to submit an issue to the administrators. Somewhere I found a link to the admin user profile, but I can't send them a message because of whatever issue I'm having. I can't send anyone a message, unless it's someone who has messaged me in the past.
I will send a message for you if you like. Just type something on here for me to copy paste for you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeM
Also, have you tried turning off all your extensions? If that works then turn them back on one by one until it doesn't work anymore
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
The only extensions I have are Google Docs Offline and Application Launcher For Drive. I doubt those are the culprit. I discovered I could send you a message by clicking on your user name. What I couldn't do was create a new message from my inbox.Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
It's no big deal. I was just trying to get access to the corrupted threads. And when I couldn't, I was trying to find a way to message the admins, which I still haven't figured out.
And I still can't start a new thread, so I couldn't get the admin's attention that way either.
And...the change in behavior between being logged in and logged out seems odd.
When I'm logged in, none of the links in the area circled in red work [[not clickable):
Attachment 41399
When I log out, all the links in the green circled area come alive:
Attachment 41400
Well if you want me to forward admin a message let me know and I will be glad to
Well, just ask them what's up? with those threads that are locked. That's all.Quote:
Originally Posted by jcole
Thanks
Thought it was just me.Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeM
I sent admin a message re: all the issues and told him to take a look here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UuvwY6CdLo
Why can't robots check the box that says 'I'm not a robot'?
;)