Hacking IT: This site rocks
March 24, 2006
 By Ronnie Apteker
Go to www.siteadvisor.com now; download this baby and install it. This is amazing stuff! I am surprised it took so long – so well done to the guys who developed it.
SiteAdvisor is a downloadable tool that plugs into your browser (Internet Explorer or Firefox, for example) that helps you stay safe while you surf the web. It helps you avoid online threats in real time.
As you cruise through the web, SiteAdvisor’s “safety button” changes colour based on its tests’ results and lets you know the following information:
“Safe” means they tested the site and didn’t find any significant problems.
“Caution” means SiteAdvisor’s tests revealed some issues you should know about, like that a site tried to change your browser defaults, or sent a lot of “non-spammy” e-mail.
“Warning” means the tests revealed some serious issues that you'll want to carefully consider before using that site at all, for instance that the site sent them lots of spammy e-mail or bundled adware with a download.
SiteAdvisor’s programmers built a system of automated robots to test each and every web site they could find, and they also tested all possible downloads and e-mail sign-up forms on the web.
Web sites are tested for excessive pop-ups, “phishing” and other fraudulent practices, and browser exploits. According to SiteAdvisor's data, they have tested sites representing more than 95 percent of worldwide web traffic. They state they have tested more than 475 000 web sites to date. Furthermore, they go on to say that downloads are tested for viruses and bundled adware, spyware or other unwanted programs.
And then there are the email sign-up forms, which are completed using a one-time user e-mail address so any subsequent spam can be tracked. Their “robots” receive mail from more than one million places already.
The mission of this cool company is to help you stay safe online by testing everything on the web and reporting its test results on its web site and through its software. It is testing primarily for safety, security, and online nuisances, not for potentially offensive content.
Offensive content is a whole other challenge and a whole other story, er, column.
Here is a good summation which I found on the site’s online terms and Conditions section: “SiteAdvisor tests websites, downloadable programs, and registration/signup forms using a variety of automated and manual techniques, in order to help Internet users make more informed decisions about where they search, browse, and transact online. The results of SiteAdvisor’s tests are reported in various summary and detailed formats on the SiteAdvisor website and via the company's software products.”
Download this amazing plugin and then do a Google search. The results will amaze you. At the end of each top line in the result of your Google search, you will see a new looking SA (SiteAdvisor) icon - just mouse over it and you will experience a new dimension that has been added to your online adventures.
Ronnie Apteker is one of the founders of Internet Solutions, the country's largest corporate Internet service provider. He is also a movie producer, an author of two books and sometimes a stand up comedian.
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