Private web - a way to secure, spam-free internet?

Filed in archive Spam News on January 22, 2007

Roger A Grimes from PC Advisor warns that internet, as we know it, is one big nasty pile of criminal traffic:

"In 2006 alone, a third of all US adults had their identity and financial information stolen or lost. Bogus messages make up 90 percent of the email traffic on the internet. Ninety-nine percent of all malware exists to steal your money. Tens of millions of pounds are being stolen off the internet every day from bank fraud, phishing attacks, bogus stock trades, extortion, etc. A large percentage of the internet is owned and operated by the criminals, and they almost never get caught."

When you look at it that way, one must stop to wonder WTF? How did it get so bad? And is there anything to be done?

Grimes thinks that only loss of anonymity, encrypting and thorough tracking and authentication can stop the internet and its users from being victimized over and over again. This new internet would be a closed participant group, and fees for use would apply.

Although I can see the beauty of no DDoS attacks, no spam, no phishing webs and complete reliability of the information provided, together with increased speed of communication, I can't really back up the idea of taking the easier path.

Why? Because it sounds like taking the easier path, doing what's good only for us privately and neglecting to look at the broader perspective. Only around 200 people send 80% of all spams. There is over 6 billion humans on Earth right now, and I would hate to think the rest of us are just to darn stupid to catch and imprison those 200 evil souls.

What we need, IMHO, are better laws, harsher punishments and better web security. We also need regular users educated, because internet crime would not exist if there were not people who fall for it. We all need to report spam, phishing, and other nuisances, demand decision makers to do their job and protect internet.

For me it was never an option to lay low and pretend to be dead. What do you think?