Reading #1

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

The internet is a place where all people can gather and share information with each other 24 hours a day. This is very appealing to many because of the anonymity that it provides if you so choose. The problem with this however, is that much of the so called “information” you believe you are gathering is in fact counterfeit, or misinformation. In a world of online research and study, it’s hard for many people to determine the difference between a fabricated website and one that is factual. These counterfeit sites give many people wrong information before they are discovered and dealt with. A good example of this is the Makah tribe for the reading. After they began killing Gray Whales, a site popped up called Makah.org which on the outside seemed like a legitimate site for the tribe, but deeper in had links to anti whaling info and things of that nature. The actual site was Makah.com. Many people would instantly believe, as I did, that the .org site is the real one, but this is not always the case.
Some websites and information on the internet is obviously fabricated, and these are more satirical or humorous in nature. They aren’t trying to pass themselves off as something they aren’t. It’s the sites trying to look legitimate that you really need to worry about. The other big thing to worry about is sites that are passing themselves off as legitimate and asking you for donations or personal information. For the most part these sites are all malicious in nature, and are only out to take your money.