Paranoia??

[Unregistered (imported)]

There are some valid points raised here. Allow me to put in my two cents worth, based on my experience with HTML coding, as well as JavaScript, and from the viewpoint I've gained from several years of maintaining and using computers, mainframes as well as PCs.

Speaking of the Internet in general, and not the EA specifically, there are many Websites out there with nasty little lines of code in them called "Web bugs". These are one-pixel by one-pixel parts of the page that are completely invisible, and unless you check the source code of the site, you'd never suspect they're there. The purpose of a Web bug is to track you as you surf, and then to report your activities to a remote server. They're generally used for collecting information about your buying and shopping habits, but you can see the potential for abuse.

There is also a type of coding out there in the wild known as "Cross-Site Scripting", of CSS (not to be confused with Cascading Style Sheets). This code usually uses cookies to track your Internet usage, for the same purpose as noted above. If you're familiar with HTML and JavaScript, you can check a Website by surfing to it with Internet Explorer, right-clicking a clear area of the page, and selecting "View Source". It's because of this abuse of cookies that I use a cookie manager that allows me to specify which ones of the little beasties are actually placed on my hard drive.

I'm sure the EA does not engage in this type of behavior, and accept completely the statements of the Webmaster that they don't. However, I do know that EA collects and uses our IP addresses. That was demonstrated several months ago when the Administrator took some members to task for having the same IP address as other members. His conclusion was that one person was using more than one username, and that's probably the case. There is one other explanation, though. In my own case, I access the EA through a public computer at a large library. It's entirely possible that another person could use the same machine, thereby making it seem as if we are actually the same person.

As to why I don't like others to know my IP address, let me add this: If you go to www.urgentclick.com/whats_my_IP_address.php, you'll see your IP displayed there. Write down those numbers, then click the link that reads "IP Address Trace". Type in the numbers on the next page and trace them. You'll probably see a results page listing your ISP, along with your hometown and state. That's just a simple little free utility. I know from personal experience that a paid service can use that information to find your full name, your street address, and in some cases your Social Security number.

I know, of course, that the EA has to use IP addresses. That's just the nature of the Internet, and it's the way computers talk to one another. There simply has to be some form of identifier; however, it does not have to be collected and used by the Administrator of any Website. That part is voluntary on his or her part. Spoofing of usernames and passwords is a fact of life, and in nearly all cases is harmless.

Let me conclude this overly long rant by paraphrasing a bumper sticker I've seen many times: If you're not paranoid, you probably don't understand what's going on.

[Paolo]

Your points are absolutely valid, sir/ma'am/other...

You have only OUR word that we do not sell/share IP#'s/emails. You have only to trust us and to trust Shannon that the EA/BME servers are secure and that we respect your privacy.

Add to that the fact that we really don't CARE what you do when you're online and not here...that's none of OUR business. It's yours alone. Too bad not everyone thinks this, or holds such a high opionion of us as I do!





Unless of course it's something really really really GOOD and we'd like for you to share it with us!)