Warning to the wise

[earthbelow]

I got the heads up from madwriter this morning.

I got friended sometime yesterday by a user named silent_and_calm. This user, apparently, runs a script that friends you and will capture your password if you're making a comment on this person's journal. This also seems to be a troll account from what I'm hearing.

Of course, these are all reports. And in the discussion on madwriter's journal, there was a little question as to whether there are anything *but* reports of this being done. However, enough people commented that this user had repeatedly friended and unfriended them that I got suspicious.

I also got suspicious when the user info of said troll lead me to an entry in which they said I should turn off my notifications and ignore the constant friending and unfriending if it bothered me. Something about people who are that snarky right off the bat and not that good about it really raises flags for me.

Wouldn't stand up in a court of law, but it convinced me.

So I used the handy dandy ban_set tool. Which you can read about here.

So there's your PSA for the day. If this user should friend you, I'd be cautious.

Comments

[br0ken_dolly]

that guy friended/unfriended me. i didn't friend him back, i just saw his crappy non-journal (i think it was only created a day or two before he added me). he friended/unfriended me so fast that my lj toys monitor didn't even pick up on it (which gives me daily updates about changes to my friends list).

i agree he's a troll but it never dawned on me that he had the ability to swipe passwords. wonder if anyone's reported him to lj_abuse. i might fire off an email.

[thousandpages.livejournal.com]

Well, over on the entry in madwriter's journal, I was talking with 00goddess who made inquiries with lj_abuse and she got a reply stating that yes, they know he's/she's using scripts, it's not against the TOS, and it's not possible to nab your password via commenting.

The first two I believe. The last one I'm not sure about. I'm sure livejournal believes that it's not possible, but this is the internet. There's always some smartass out there with a stick up his butt, a fridge full of Mountain Dew and the will to find a way to mess other people.

Thing is, unless it was someone you knew personally - why the hell would you want to steal someone's livejournal? Most livejournals aren't worth hacking into. I know mine isn't. Ooh, you're gonna what? Interrupt my gleeposting?

Anyway...

[br0ken_dolly]

i'm not sure if i buy it either. i mean, encryption is good, but it's still created by humans. anything one human creates, another can destroy. while it's *unlikely* a script can snag a passwd, it sure as shit isn't *impossible*. and wtf kind of script would someone be running on *livejournal* anyway? freakin' losers.

and, you're right. someone wants to read about my whiny bitching about my shitty day at work and how i miss my bf? seriously... if *that* is excitement to some kinda scriptkiddie, well.... then they're even more pathetic than i give them credit for.