Reading Report #5

"Web Hoaxes, Counterfeit Sites, and Other Spurious Information on the Internet"

I would like to say that I was surprised at just how much flase information, scams, and harmful material is available on the web, but it is to be expected when something exists that is as expansive as the internet. Web hoaxes are everywhere some more decieving than others. Some of these hoaxes can be avoided through the use of discretion and common sense. Some hoaxes are obvious and should be easily avoided, others are a little more in depth and may require the cross referencing of information across other sites and print resources. Even though some websitesmay have some of the same false information which has been the case even with reputable news sources. Sites like wikipedia have tons of useful and accurate information however it also contains false content. Some of the more harmful internet sites may include a company selling products that do not exist, other sites may lead you through a string of popup ads, while others may be uploading a virus onto your computer. These websites are often the hardest to detect and can inflict the most damage. The best thing to do when surfing the internet is make sure that you use discretion, cross refence, and use some common sense. If something seems to good to be true it often is, and if something you read is so far off the wall that you do not think it could be true then make sure you research the topic before believing it.