AOL's Blockage Of Phishing Sites... Hype Or Helpful?

from the nice-try dept

AOL is likely to get a ton of coverage for their announcement that they're going to start blocking phishing sites -- but how helpful will it really be? Already, most phishing sites don't stay online very long, as their hosts are quickly forced to take them offline. So, all AOL is doing is speeding up the process by a tiny amount. The sites will still be up for a while before AOL catches on and decides to block them. Besides, you always have to wonder about what happens when an ISP starts blocking sites without the user's ability to override. What will happen when a user wants to go to a specific site that AOL has blocked off? Will that user have a way around the blockage? Will site owners who are blocked have an appeal process if they feel the blockade is uncalled for? It's good that AOL is doing something, but claiming an ability to block phishing sites is both misleading and potentially risky. It could also open up some liability for AOL if users get to a phishing site AOL didn't block. Since AOL claims they will block these sites, will a user who gets phished be able to sue AOL for not living up to their promise to block those sites?

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