Hello I received this message today that a link for a porn site had been added to one of my Webpages. I just wondered if anyone else has had a problem. I am assuming since the change wasn't anywhere on my computer that they hacked the Rootsweb server. Are there any extra precautions I should be taking at my end. Thanks Gaila ----- Original Message ----- > >Hi, > > At: > >http://www.rootsweb.com/~gahousto/hstonlin.html#anchor369789 > > > >The link for > > > >Middle Georgia Online > >The Peachiest Pit Stop on the Web > > > >is now a porn site. Please delete it. > >Thanks! > >D. > >RootsWeb HelpDesk

That happened to me a year ago or more. Nothing had been hacked. It was a link on mine which had originally pointed to a Native American site. They apparently let the url expire and the people who grabbed it were putting up a porn site. Fortunately I think I stumbled upon it myself and the site wasn't as hardcore as some. I never did manage to exactly hook up with the Native American link that had been there but did manage to find something similar. I don't know anything you can do but basically check your link periodically. There are services that will do that for you for a fee and their is software that will check all your links periodically. Most are pretty expensive of what I have seen. Bill ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jim & Gaila" <gaila@merrington.net> To: <GAGEN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 7:05 PM Subject: [GAGEN] Fw: GAHOUSTON web site hacking > Hello > I received this message today that a link for a porn site had been added to > one of my Webpages. I just wondered if anyone else has had a problem. I am > assuming since the change wasn't anywhere on my computer that they hacked > the Rootsweb server. > > Are there any extra precautions I should be taking at my end. > Thanks > Gaila > > ----- Original Message ----- > >Hi, > > > At: > > >http://www.rootsweb.com/~gahousto/hstonlin.html#anchor369789 > > > > > >The link for > > > > > >Middle Georgia Online > > >The Peachiest Pit Stop on the Web > > > > > >is now a porn site. Please delete it. > > >Thanks! > > >D. > > >RootsWeb HelpDesk > > > > ==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > USGenWeb's motto is - Volunteers dedicated to free, online information. >

Bill - The only issue I would mention with the software that will "check links" is that it will only check to see if the link "works". It doesn't necessarily check it for content. Now the software I have may not be as sophisticated as a lot of those out there, but I'm not aware of one that checks for content as opposed to whether the link works or not... Good suggestion to check all those "outside" links though! URLs do change and can be bought out, and we could end up promoting something we don't want to (even if it isn't porn)! Mary Kathryn Mitchell Co., GAGenWeb CC At 11:54 PM 5/13/2003 -0400, you wrote: >That happened to me a year ago or more. Nothing had been hacked. It was a >link on mine which had originally pointed to a Native American site. They >apparently let the url expire and the people who grabbed it were putting up >a porn site. Fortunately I think I stumbled upon it myself and the site >wasn't as hardcore as some. I never did manage to exactly hook up with the >Native American link that had been there but did manage to find something >similar. I don't know anything you can do but basically check your link >periodically. There are services that will do that for you for a fee and >their is software that will check all your links periodically. Most are >pretty expensive of what I have seen. >Bill >----- Original Message ----- >From: "Jim & Gaila" <gaila@merrington.net> >To: <GAGEN-L@rootsweb.com> >Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 7:05 PM >Subject: [GAGEN] Fw: GAHOUSTON web site hacking > > > > Hello > > I received this message today that a link for a porn site had been added >to > > one of my Webpages. I just wondered if anyone else has had a problem. I >am > > assuming since the change wasn't anywhere on my computer that they hacked > > the Rootsweb server. > > > > Are there any extra precautions I should be taking at my end. > > Thanks > > Gaila > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > >Hi, > > > > At: > > > >http://www.rootsweb.com/~gahousto/hstonlin.html#anchor369789 > > > > > > > >The link for > > > > > > > >Middle Georgia Online > > > >The Peachiest Pit Stop on the Web > > > > > > > >is now a porn site. Please delete it. > > > >Thanks! > > > >D. > > > >RootsWeb HelpDesk > > > > > > > > ==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > > USGenWeb's motto is - Volunteers dedicated to free, online information. > > > > >==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== >Confused about Copyrights??? Review USGenWeb's policy on copyrights at: > http://www.usgenweb.org/volunteers/copyright.html

Mary Kathryn Some can check for content if the site subscribes to one of the Site Rating services like Safe Surf. That stuff is all in meta tags which the programs can parse. When you rate your site you have to submit the url to the Rating outfit who periodically checks your site for content that doesn't fit the rating. One of the problems that we have in the genealogy word is we use words that in one context would not be very nice but in the hereditary context are simply factual. I am not sure the rating services can rate that sort of site accurately unless they do it by count then an occasional reference to someone's illegitimate heritage might not cause a problem.<G> I also wasn't really hyping link checking software - I feel the programs and/or services that do much of a job of that are way too expensive except for commercial sites. My html design software will check the links but only the on site are really worth the trouble because as you say they don't tell you anything about what it connects to and the reality is that the site may be there today and be long gone tomorrow or it could be down for a week and come back up. Bill ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mary Kathryn Kozy" <mkozy@attglobal.net> To: <GAGEN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, May 14, 2003 4:03 PM Subject: Re: [GAGEN] Fw: GAHOUSTON web site hacking > Bill - > > The only issue I would mention with the software that will "check links" is > that it will only check to see if the link "works". It doesn't necessarily > check it for content. Now the software I have may not be as sophisticated > as a lot of those out there, but I'm not aware of one that checks for > content as opposed to whether the link works or not... > > Good suggestion to check all those "outside" links though! URLs do change > and can be bought out, and we could end up promoting something we don't > want to (even if it isn't porn)! > > Mary Kathryn > Mitchell Co., GAGenWeb CC > > At 11:54 PM 5/13/2003 -0400, you wrote: > > >That happened to me a year ago or more. Nothing had been hacked. It was a > >link on mine which had originally pointed to a Native American site. They > >apparently let the url expire and the people who grabbed it were putting up > >a porn site. Fortunately I think I stumbled upon it myself and the site > >wasn't as hardcore as some. I never did manage to exactly hook up with the > >Native American link that had been there but did manage to find something > >similar. I don't know anything you can do but basically check your link > >periodically. There are services that will do that for you for a fee and > >their is software that will check all your links periodically. Most are > >pretty expensive of what I have seen. > >Bill > >----- Original Message ----- > >From: "Jim & Gaila" <gaila@merrington.net> > >To: <GAGEN-L@rootsweb.com> > >Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 7:05 PM > >Subject: [GAGEN] Fw: GAHOUSTON web site hacking > > > > > > > Hello > > > I received this message today that a link for a porn site had been added > >to > > > one of my Webpages. I just wondered if anyone else has had a problem. I > >am > > > assuming since the change wasn't anywhere on my computer that they hacked > > > the Rootsweb server. > > > > > > Are there any extra precautions I should be taking at my end. > > > Thanks > > > Gaila > > > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > >Hi, > > > > > At: > > > > >http://www.rootsweb.com/~gahousto/hstonlin.html#anchor369789 > > > > > > > > > >The link for > > > > > > > > > >Middle Georgia Online > > > > >The Peachiest Pit Stop on the Web > > > > > > > > > >is now a porn site. Please delete it. > > > > >Thanks! > > > > >D. > > > > >RootsWeb HelpDesk > > > > > > > > > > > > ==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > > > USGenWeb's motto is - Volunteers dedicated to free, online information. > > > > > > > > >==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > >Confused about Copyrights??? Review USGenWeb's policy on copyrights at: > > http://www.usgenweb.org/volunteers/copyright.html > > > > ==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > Regional Coordinators are there to help County Coordinators. Don't > hesitate to contact them should you have any, any question. To find > info on your region visit http://www.rootsweb.com/~gagenweb/regional.html >

Now that I have calmed down from thinking someone had hacked into the site, and can see it was a change in the link, I am checking all of the links. Seems like I have just done this, but this site did not come up as a broken link in the report, so unless someone had warned me about it, it may have been awhile before I came across it. I think the most important thing is to fix it as quickly as possible, when you do realise it. I had images of my strict Baptist Aunts coming to scold me - not a nice image. They wouldn't have tolerated this type of site for one minute. I think they would have been down there hitting someone on the head with an umbrella. Still given all this brouhaha, I think quarterly updates will work. Given the moment someone warns you of a breach in the system, it is fixed asap. Gaila ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mary Kathryn Kozy" <mkozy@attglobal.net> To: <GAGEN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, May 15, 2003 6:03 AM Subject: Re: [GAGEN] Fw: GAHOUSTON web site hacking > Bill - > > The only issue I would mention with the software that will "check links" is > that it will only check to see if the link "works". It doesn't necessarily > check it for content. Now the software I have may not be as sophisticated > as a lot of those out there, but I'm not aware of one that checks for > content as opposed to whether the link works or not... > > Good suggestion to check all those "outside" links though! URLs do change > and can be bought out, and we could end up promoting something we don't > want to (even if it isn't porn)! > > Mary Kathryn > Mitchell Co., GAGenWeb CC > > At 11:54 PM 5/13/2003 -0400, you wrote: > > >That happened to me a year ago or more. Nothing had been hacked. It was a > >link on mine which had originally pointed to a Native American site. They > >apparently let the url expire and the people who grabbed it were putting up > >a porn site. Fortunately I think I stumbled upon it myself and the site > >wasn't as hardcore as some. I never did manage to exactly hook up with the > >Native American link that had been there but did manage to find something > >similar. I don't know anything you can do but basically check your link > >periodically. There are services that will do that for you for a fee and > >their is software that will check all your links periodically. Most are > >pretty expensive of what I have seen. > >Bill > >----- Original Message ----- > >From: "Jim & Gaila" <gaila@merrington.net> > >To: <GAGEN-L@rootsweb.com> > >Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 7:05 PM > >Subject: [GAGEN] Fw: GAHOUSTON web site hacking > > > > > > > Hello > > > I received this message today that a link for a porn site had been added > >to > > > one of my Webpages. I just wondered if anyone else has had a problem. I > >am > > > assuming since the change wasn't anywhere on my computer that they hacked > > > the Rootsweb server. > > > > > > Are there any extra precautions I should be taking at my end. > > > Thanks > > > Gaila > > > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > >Hi, > > > > > At: > > > > >http://www.rootsweb.com/~gahousto/hstonlin.html#anchor369789 > > > > > > > > > >The link for > > > > > > > > > >Middle Georgia Online > > > > >The Peachiest Pit Stop on the Web > > > > > > > > > >is now a porn site. Please delete it. > > > > >Thanks! > > > > >D. > > > > >RootsWeb HelpDesk > > > > > > > > > > > > ==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > > > USGenWeb's motto is - Volunteers dedicated to free, online information. > > > > > > > > >==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > >Confused about Copyrights??? Review USGenWeb's policy on copyrights at: > > http://www.usgenweb.org/volunteers/copyright.html > > > > ==== GAGEN Mailing List ==== > Regional Coordinators are there to help County Coordinators. Don't > hesitate to contact them should you have any, any question. To find > info on your region visit http://www.rootsweb.com/~gagenweb/regional.html >