I have had several reports that Norton is reporting that my blog is a ‘dangerous website’ and ‘known malicious website’.
As soon as I got the first report, I ‘swept’ my blog with my antivirus and anti malware software ... and found nothing wrong. I then tried logging on to my blog using my PC (which has McAfee antivirus software) and laptop (which AVG antivirus software), and neither showed any warning message.
All I can assume is that either there is something on my blog that my antivirus software is not picking up or that Norton has some sort of problem with Google’s Blogger software.
All this has come on a day when my blog has been swamped by spam messages, even though I have activated captcha word verification under the comments 'Settings'. These are deleted and never published, but are a monumental waste of time ... and positively irritating!
Awful Bob! Not what you are needing at all. Hope it gets sorted out very soon.
ReplyDeleteTradgardmastare,
DeleteI'm trying to get the situation sorted out, but as yet I've had no help from either Norton or Blogger. Hopefully the problem can be solved soon.
All the best,
Bob
I got that a day or so ago. I just clicked through the warning.
ReplyDeleteTrebian,
DeleteI suspect that this may be down to a software clash. No doubt it will be sorted out sometime soon.
All the best,
Bob
My laptop reports a number of Blogger blogs as "Not Secure" (I'm using McAfee) and a couple of blogs are completely blocked by the Firewall at work. Maybe there are links on your blog that some of the protection services find suspicious..??
ReplyDeleteMaudlin Jack Tar,
DeleteI’ve tried checking links from my blog to other blogs and websites, but I cannot find any that are in any way dubious. I’ve no idea what else I can do.
All the best,
Bob
The "not secure" is expected as the blog uses http rather than https. This just means that there is no end to end encryption, not that there is anything malicious on the site itself. As my security software (Kapersky) reports no problems I think it's just that Norton has got its knickers in a twist for some obscure reason. Being on the end of a load of spam should not cause a problem - save to you as you have to delete it all. If you were sending it you'd end up on a blacklist and none of your emails would arrive, but obviously you'd not do this.
DeleteMike Hall,
DeleteAs the url of my blog is https://wargamingmiscellany.blogspot.com/, I thought that this meant that it was secure ... so I’m not sure why Norton has a problem with it.
I’ve just had another splurge of spam arrive ... and I’ve deleted every one of them. I only wish that there was some way to spam the spammers! They are SO ANNOYING!
All the best,
Bob
I've had a wave of spam comments as well in the last week. Thankfully most are being caught by bloggers junk mail settings although a few somehow make it through. I can usually delete these fairly quickly but like you say, its a monumental waste of time having to keep clearing them off. Its all extra admin we could do without. I've very reluctant to switch to fully moderated comments, but the day may come when that is inevitable.
ReplyDeleteBigLee,
DeleteThe spam seems to come in waves. The most recent ones are all of a quite specific sexual nature ... which is a bit of a change from some of the others I’ve received in the past!
I moved over to moderating all comments some time ago, and despite the fact that it is a bit of a drag, it seems to have reduced the chances of spam getting through. I only wish that Blogger could ‘learn’ what sort of messages to automatically filter.
All the best,
Bob
Maybe Norton was reacting to the spam messages?
ReplyDeleteDonjondo,
DeleteThat may well be the case ... but if it is, I would have hoped that deleting all the spam messages would have cured the problem by now.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteThe mysterious world of Computers and the Internet- very annoying and frustrating for you Bob. I've only had my Blog 'Spammed' once- I 'Blocked' the 'Sender' and deleated all the Comments in Settings and have never had any trouble since with Blogging. If I receive a e-mail message on Webmail that doesn't jell with me or I don't recognize -I immediately delete it and certainly don't open it. Good fortune fixing the problems. Best Wishes. KEV.
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteI’ve pretty well done what you’ve done ... but it’s almost as if once your blog is identified as having a problem, it’s difficult to get the warning removed.
No doubt, it will get sorted out eventually.
All the best,
Bob
Keep chipping away at it Bob- there has to be an answer.
DeleteKev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteDon’t worry, I will!
All the best,
Bob
I had the same access problem with my blog. A simple message to Norton resolved the issue.
DeleteJim Duncan,
DeleteCheers! I’ll follow up your suggestion.
All the best,
Bob
Up and running now Bob.
DeleteJim
Jim Duncan,
DeleteThat’s good news. Thanks for letting me know.
All the best,
Bob
Hello Robert, your blog site has been whitelisted now.
ReplyDeleteThank you
Upen
Threat Analyst
Upen,
DeleteThank you for your message.
All the best,
Bob
Bob, to follow up on your earlier reply, I was at the time accessing your blog via http rather than https. It seems that both work and the fact that I was using the former was causing Chrome to label the site as insecure. Why both work or why I was using the former is another matter. It was actually Feedly that was opening your site for me so maybe you were using http when I originally followed you on Feedly? I'll have to try to change this.
ReplyDeleteMike Hall,
DeleteMy blog has now been given a 'Persil' grading, so I'm hoping that the old http url will now work. However, I'd recommend that you use the https one in future, as this should be more secure.
Things on the Internet seem to be in a constant state of 'change for the better' ... but for some reason, it never quite lives up to one's expectations.
All the best ... and thanks for persevering,
Bob
All good this morning Bob, was blocked by Sky broadband yesterday due to 'dangerous malware detected'. Good luck with the new book.
ReplyDelete'Lee,
DeleteMy blog was given a 'Persil' grading yesterday after several complaints, and as far as I can see, things are back to normal.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob, not sure this will help, but there is an issue with my Mac, which is being suffered by many other users. My Printer is being declared as 'malicious and will damage my computer' and this has happened to thousands who have HP printers. There actually is no malicious software, just a compatibility issue between the two systems following a software upgrade. No doubt it will be sorted, but I cannot use my printer at the moment.
ReplyDeleteIt might be worth googling your issue to if others have the same problem. I have also been warned that scammers are taking advantage of my particular issue by offering a link to help sort things out!
Bob The Old Painter,
DeleteI suspect that - as you state in your comment - the problem has been caused by a software incompatibility problem, and that once readers access the blog using the newer https url, the problem should go away.
I’m surprised that your Mac and HP printer won’t work together. Perhaps the upgrade has a,termed the printer driver in some way, and a newer version needs to be installed.
Good luck with solving your conundrum.
All the best,
Bob
Bob The Old Painter, I understand that a lot of Macs had a problem following a recent software update but the the printer problem is supposedly caused by HP cancelling a certificate that the Macs Gatekeeper software needs. Have you seen the HP knowledge base article which supposedly gives solutions? If Bob allows links it is at:
Deletehttps://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Printers-Knowledge-Base/quot-HPxxxxx-framework-quot-will-damage-your-computer-quot/ta-p/7825233
I don't use a HP printer so I've no idea if this will work
Mike Hall,
DeleteThat is very useful information. Thank you for sharing it with us.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Mike Hall, thank you for the tip off. I duly downloaded the fix from HP and hey presto, my printer now works again. I am very grateful for the link. Bob, apologies for hijacking your blog!
DeleteBob The Old Painter,
DeleteI’m glad that the fix worked. As for ‘hijacking’ my blog ... well, I’m never going to object if we all benefit as a result of it!
All the best,
Bob
Nortons seems to be flagging a number of wargames related blogs. I complain to Nortons each time, using the dispute button, pointing out that it is eroding my confidence in their Safeweb product, particularly as they provide no justification for the flag.
ReplyDeletePhf,
DeleteNow that is interesting! It sounds as if Norton had adjusted their algorithms to highlight blogs with 'war' or 'wargame' in them, and reports like yours are helping to reset the parameters. Thanks for making the effort to hit your dispute button in order to help resolve this situation.
All the best,
Bob
Don't you just love the technology ecosystem (not)? .. blame automation, keywords, lack of software intelligence and perhaps it's even "dumb deep learning" (plays a good game of Go apparently) .. or is it a dangerous intellectual meme - the Portable Wargame undermining the safety of the world .. now don't go all Trump on me ;)
ReplyDeleteGeordie an Exiled FoG,
DeleteThe older I get, the more complex and/or unfathomable the world - and particularly the technology we use - becomes. Whatever happened to the idea that if it wasn't broken, you didn't need to fix it.
I keep remembering the words of Captain Joseph 'Mutt' Summers - the chief test pilot for Supermarine - who is quoted as saying after the Spitfire's first test flight, 'Don't touch anything'. Nowadays, someone would have done ... to make it 'better'!
All the best,
Bob