Death through Facebook

Death through Facebook. Family learns of teenage son's car crash death through Facebook. Twins Angela and Maryanne Vourlis logged on to Facebook expecting to read best wishes from their friends as they began celebrating their 20th birthday.

Instead, to their horror, they were confronted with R.I.P. messages about their younger brother Bobby - who, unknown to the family, had been killed in a car crash.

The police had not got around to passing on the bad news to the family before 17-year-old Bobby's friends posted the death notice on Facebook.

Two of Bobby's friends also died when their car crashed in heavy rain.

Killed: Bobby Vourlis, who died in a car crash aged just 17. His family learned about his death not from police, but from Facebook

'I didn't get it,' Angela said as she recalled the moment on the morning of her birthday when she logged into the Facebook page.

'All these people were writing "RIP Chris Naylor" and "RIP Bobby" and I thought "What's going on?"'

She told Sydney's Daily Telegraph that she desperately began phoning her brother - but there was no answer on his mobile.

'I kept ringing and messaging but couldn't get on to him. So I rang Mum and said: "Chris Naylor must have died - I just read it on Facebook. But where's Bobby? People are writing about Bobby, too."'

Then came her mother's chilling reply - and with it a heartbreaking realisation: 'Bobby was with Chris Naylor last night.'

Social networking had broken the terrible news before the police could bring it to the family, even though six hours had passed since the teenager's body was found in the car wreckage.

Mrs Vourlis had to ring her local police station in a west Sydney suburb to ask if it was correct that her son had died.

Mr Peter Matelis, Bobby's uncle, said it 'beggared belief' that police had not contacted the family immediately after the accident.

'It's every parent's nightmare to lose a child in a car accident, but to have to hear it on Facebook, then have to chase up the police yourself, is just horrifying,' Mr Matelis told the Sydney paper.

Police defended the delay, pointing out that officers had difficulty in establishing Bobby's identity.

Once his identity was confirmed, one police station contacted another to send a car to the Vourlis family home.

But in the meantime, said Superintendent Ray Filewood, Mrs Vourlis made contact with police who then confirmed the death of her son.

Many Australians posting online comments said it was not the fault of the police because they had to be certain about the identities of the dead.

One writer said: 'What do people expect? With today's technology friends in attendance at these crash sites can text and post R.I.P. messages to friends and onto Facebook well before police have even had time to recover identification information from the deceased still trapped in vehicles.

'Just goes to show, technology can work against the police, just as it works for them, too.' ( dailymail.co.uk )

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Facebook ghouls post sick taunts and photos

Murder girl's tribute site hit by saboteurs: Facebook ghouls post sick taunts and photos. Ghouls have sabotaged a website dedicated to Francesca McFall, the former head girl murdered by her father.

They left vile photographs and messages on the Facebook tribute pages, saying the 18-year-old 'had it coming'.

Belle of the ball: Francesca wanted to be a doctor

There were depraved descriptions of how she and her mother Susan met their deaths at the hands of her father Hugh on Friday.

Photographs showing Francesca's head superimposed on naked or half-naked bodies were also posted over the weekend. Much of the abuse is too unpleasant to print.

The attack has outraged the 1,700 members of Francesca's tribute site.

Her cousin Jonny Molesworth, 17, responded to the saboteurs by writing: 'You have no idea what it's like to lose an aunty, uncle and cousin in one day.'

Ffion Morris, another member, said: 'I am horrified at some of the comments on this page and have just been through them all and reported them. It is just sick that people have no respect.'

Last night the pictures and comments were removed and a private Facebook site set up.

Francesca and Mrs McFall, 56, are believed to have been smothered by McFall at their bungalow in Oswestry, Shropshire, in the early hours of Friday.

The 48-year-old telephoned police and confessed to the murders before driving to the office of his wholesale florist business to hang himself.

Neighbours described his actions as unimaginable for a mild-mannered man who would blush if anyone swore.

McFall is said to have enjoyed a loving relationship with his wife and only child

Francesca. Known as Frankie, she was doing her A-levels at £12,000-a-year Oswestry School and had ambitions to become a doctor. She was head girl at her previous school.

Susan and Hugh McFall: He is thought to have smothered her and her daughter

Rumours that debts were behind the tragedy were last night ruled out by a family friend. Graeme Robson, 45, who went out with Francesca's stepsister Nicola Gilham, said:

'They had no mortgage on the house and were thinking of moving. They got it valued at about £300,000.

'The debt thing just doesn't ring true with me. They never wanted for anything and they didn't struggle. They were very family-orientated and all the money he spent was on the house.

'Hugh wasn't a drinker, he wasn't a smoker, he wasn't over- exuberant. He always looked after them.

'Hugh doted on Frankie beyond belief. She was a very clever girl, a very pretty girl and he would do anything for her. I saw her last week and she said she'd buy me a drink for my birthday. It's all so incomprehensible.'

Flowers and tributes left at 40 Hampton Road, Oswestry, Shropshire, where the bodies of Sue and her daughter Frankie were discovered on Friday

Mr Robson attended an emotional church service yesterday where prayers were said for the family.

Oswestry vicar Simon Thorburn told the congregation: 'Failure is a common human experience and yet it seems that we are often under pressure only to appear successful.

'Perhaps it's nearer the truth that beyond many of our front doors are people who know that there is a brokenness to their lives.

'I am not using that phrase in the David Cameron sense.

'We all have our weaknesses but sadly it's not something to own up to or even to recognise as a pretty normal state of affairs.'

Mr Thorburn compared the tragedy to that of the Foster family near Oswestry in 2008. Facing financial ruin, Christopher Foster killed wife Jill and daughter Kirstie, 15, before torching their mansion and committing suicide. ( dailymail.co.uk )

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Let's Kill the OS Upgrade Disc

Let's Kill the OS Upgrade Disc. Life Would Be Easier if We Paid for Ongoing OS Upgrades the Way We Pay for Other Digital Assets - By Subscription

Operating System Upgrades

The reason I'm writing this column won't be a surprise to anyone one who follows technology: Windows 7. I bought the upgrade disc (on the pre-order special price). When it arrived, I started the upgrade process for my Vista desktop. Knowing that the disc was licensed only to upgrade an existing Windows installation, I pressed the big button for a "Custom" installation and the disc set up my computer more-or-less cleanly with Windows 7. What I really wanted to do was re-format my hard drive and start from a blank slate on my computer, but I was afraid to do that since I thought the disc would see that as a non-upgrade install and not work.

Microsoft Windows Vista upgrades on display at a Costco in Mountain View, Calif., in this Oct. 23, 2008 file photo. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

Eventually, I did it anyway, thanks in part to the confidence I got from other users who had found ways to install an upgrade disc to a fresh PC. I re-installed Windows 7 on the computer and asked the installer to format the disc first. It did; it installed Windows 7; and two days later I nervously entered my license key for Windows to authorize itself - which it did, no problems. I didn't have to resort to any hacks. Hats off to Microsoft for doing what it should have.

But my fear about the upgrade did cause me some nerves, and is also the reason I did the "custom" or semi-clean upgrade in the first place, which turned out to be a waste of valuable time.

I'm also peeved that I had to pay for this upgrade. Wasn't running Vista for two years payment enough? That OS was patched and upgraded numerous times while I was running it, at no cost to me. Windows 7, while a better experience, is still clearly Vista with problems fixed and an improved interface. I don't feel I should have to pay for it again.

Then there's OS X Snow Leopard, another upgrade I paid for. Sure, it was only $29, but what did I get? Nothing that's made a tangible difference in my Mac experience. My Macbook runs very well now. It ran very well before I did the upgrade, too. There are nice new features, but they're incremental.

How many times can operating system vendors charge users for offering the same fundamental benefit on the hardware that they already own?

Here's what I propose: No more OS upgrade pricing. Vendors, make your money for each new machine that runs your OS, either up front when the OS is installed on the machine (easy for Apple, which makes 99.99 percent of the machines that run the Apple OS), or by letting customers subscribe to operating system upgrades as an ongoing service. The OS subscription model is probably a better bet for business customers on the Windows side. On OS X, it could be part of Apple Care. When users retire a machine, they can end the subscription and get a pro-rated portion of their money back.

So much of what you pay for with an OS is ongoing maintenance and security updates anyway. I don't see how a reasonable subscription fee would be a stopper for reasonable users, assuming the total cost for the subscription was about the same as the cost for buying the operating system license outright.

It's time to recognize that the Webware, or software-as-a-service model, can work for installed software, especially now that we've become accustomed to paying subscription fees for almost every digital asset we use (Web apps, mobile phones, cable TV boxes, multiplayer games). We need ongoing vendor support for an OS anyway, so why not level out the expense?

Sure, OS makers don't get the big revenue spike when they ship a major new version. But they do get a predictable revenue stream, and as machines age and people replace them, and as new machines are built and bought, they can still make enough money. And market forces would (I would hope) keep prices competitive.

If we end up paying more for our OSes, I will be first in line to tar and feather myself.

Application Upgrades

There's another form of upgrade that I find vexing: the major app upgrade. I'm looking at Microsoft again here, with its Office upgrades, but also at Adobe and many other software vendors that offer upgrades at retail for existing users of their products.

These upgrade prices are often so low in comparison to new-user prices that they encourage users to find workarounds, legal and not, to get the deals. One co-worker, for example, once acquired Photoshop by buying an upgrade version online, and a leftover, older version at a local computer store, just so he could install the older version and upgrade it. Legal? Sure. Ridiculous? That, too. With new-user pricing for major apps being so high, it's no wonder that people will go to lengths to get the cheaper upgrade path . . . and then be stuck with having to install two apps to do the job of one.

Here's a better idea: Sell software at a reasonable price. And take the upgrades off the shelves. Instead, offer upgrades to apps exclusively from within the apps themselves, to current users of the apps, and deliver the code over the Net. Users might pay the same for major software upgrades, but the upgrade discs won't be floating around telling new users that they're being taking for a ride when they want to buy the app for the first time. Hopefully this could help vendors actually lower prices and get their apps in the hands of more customers.

I was surprised to hear from a Microsoft exec that the issue with in-place full version upgrades is more technical than economic. Chris Bryant, director of Office Product Management, told me that building an upgrade path into an app requires a clear vision of the future of the app so the upgrade framework will work (which doesn't quite explain how major service pack upgrades are possible). The reason I expected to hear - that retailers wouldn't benefit from the upgrades - he said didn't necessarily hold, since Microsoft has methods to track who sold an installation of the software first, and can credit that seller for revenues from in-place upgrades.

These are just a few ideas, and I'm aware they're far from perfect solutions. But upgrade discs cause consumers confusion. There are ways to give users and companies the same benefits in cleaner packages. ( cbsnews.com )

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"Verify Your Account Info"? It's Phishing

"Verify Your Account Info"? It's Phishing. How to Recognize Fraudulent E-mail Solicitations Known as Phishing and Keep Your Accounts Safe. If you have received an e-mail from the Internal Revenue Service or the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, chances are it was a phishing attempt. If you received e-mail from your bank, PayPal, or Facebook urging you to immediately verify information or risk having your account suspended, it was undoubtedly phishing.

(AP / CBS)

Phishing attacks have spiked this year, according to recent reports. The Anti-Phishing Working Group reports that there were more than 55,600 phishing attacks in the first half of 2009 alone. Phishing is particularly dangerous because once criminals get a victim's password for one Web site they can often use it to get into other accounts where people have re-used the password.

And anyone can be at risk. The wife of FBI Director Robert Mueller banned him from doing online banking after he came close to falling for a phishing attempt.

Here is some basic information that can help people avoid being tricked by phishing attacks.

What is phishing?

Phishing is an attempt, usually via e-mail, to trick people into revealing sensitive information like usernames, passwords, and credit card data by pretending to be a bank or some other legitimate entity. The e-mails typically include a link to a Web site that appears to be legitimate and which prompts users to provide information. Sometimes, the phishing e-mail will include a form in an attachment to fill out. One common tactic phishers use is to pretend to be from the fraud department of a financial institution or online retailer like PayPal and ask for information to be provided to prevent identity fraud. In one case, a phishing e-mail purporting to be from a state lottery commission asked recipients for their banking information so their "winnings" could be deposited into their accounts.

Phishers also are increasingly exploiting interest in news and other popular topics to trick people into clicking on links. One e-mail purportedly about swine flu asked people to provide their name, address, phone number, and other information as part of a survey on the illness. And users of social networks are becoming popular targets. Twitter users

Attackers are also turning to instant messaging to lure people into their traps. In one recent scam a live chat window was launched via the browser. The scammer communicated to victims via the chat window, pretending to be from a bank and asking for additional information

What are other recent examples of phishing attacks?

A recent e-mail scam asks PayPal customers to provide additional information or risk getting their account deleted because of changes in the service agreement. Recipients are urged to click on a hyperlink that says "Get Verified!"

E-mails that look like they come from the FDIC include a subject line that says "check your Bank Deposit Insurance Coverage" or "FDIC has officially named your bank a failed bank." The e-mails include a link to a fake FDIC site where visitors are prompted to open forms to fill out. Clicking on the form links downloads the Zeus virus, which is designed to steal bank passwords and other information.

E-mails that look like they come from the IRS tell recipients that they are eligible to receive a tax refund and that the money could be claimed by clicking on a link in the e-mail. The link directs visitors to a fake IRS site that prompts for personal and financial information.

A legitimate-looking Facebook e-mail asks people to provide information to help the social network update its log-in system. Clicking the "update" button in the e-mail takes users to a fake Facebook log-in screen where the user name is filled in and visitors are prompted to provide their password. When the password is typed in, people end up on a page that offers an "Update Tool," but which is actually the Zeus bank Trojan.

What are some tell-tale signs of a phishing attempt?

Many phishing attempts originate from outside the U.S. so they often have misspellings and grammatical errors. Some have an urgent tone and they seek sensitive information that legitimate companies don't typically ask for via e-mail.

What should I look for in an e-mail?

Check the sender information to see if it looks legitimate. Criminals will choose addresses that are similar to the one they are faking. For instance, phishers have used "Alerts@Paypal.co.uk." However, legitimate PayPal messages in the U.S. come from Service@paypal.com" and include a key icon. Most phishing e-mails come from outside the U.S. so an address ending in ".uk" or something other than ".com" could indicate it's a phishing attempt.

The e-mail address may also be obscured. Hitting "reply all" may reveal the true e-mail address. You can also set your e-mail preferences to show "full header" to see the full e-mail address and other information. If you are at all unsure whether the e-mail is legitimate, go to the company's Web site to see the address listed.

Legitimate companies tend to use customer names or user names in the e-mail, and banks often will include part of an account number. Phishing emails typically offer generic greetings, like "Dear PayPal customer."

Inspect the hyperlinks inside the body of the e-mail. Phishers typically will use subdomains or letters or numbers before the company name, and sometimes the words in the links are misspelled. For example, www.BankA.security.com would link to the 'BankA' section of the 'security' Web site. Often, it's difficult to tell if the link is legitimate just by looking at it. By mousing over the link you can see the real address on the bottom of most Web browsers.

In addition, PayPal, Amazon, banks, and many other businesses use the SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) protocol which is designed to ensure that customers are visiting the real site. That means https:// will be seen in the URL address bar instead of just http:// and usually there will be some other change in the address bar. For instance, PayPal displays a "P" and its name is highlighted in green at the front of the URL. The major browsers have antiphishing measures designed to detect malicious sites. Some phishers also try to hide the real Web address they are sending victims to by using URL shortening services.

If the e-mail has an attachment, be wary of .exe files. Scammers like to hide viruses and other malware there so it executes when opened.

Do not be fooled by the look of the Web site you may be directed to. The Web site may look just like a real bank or PayPal page, including the use of the real logos and branding. It could be a good fake page or it could be a legitimate page with a phishing pop-up window on top.

How can phishing attacks be avoided?

-Try to stay off spam lists. Don't post your e-mail address on public sites. Create an e-mail address that is less likely to get included in spam lists. For instance, instead of bobsmith@xyz.com, use bob.smith.az@xyz.com.

-If an e-mail looks reasonable contact the company directly if you receive an e-mail asking you to verify information. Type the address of the company into the address bar directly rather than click on a link. Or call them, but don't use any phone number provided in the e-mail.

-Don't give out personal information requested via e-mail. Legitimate companies and agencies will use regular mail for important communications and never ask customers to confirm log-in or passwords by clicking on links in e-mail.

-Look carefully at the Web address a link directs to and type in addresses in the browser for businesses if you are uncertain.

-Don't open e-mail attachments that you did not expect to receive. Don't open download links in IM. And don't enter personal information in a pop-up window or e-mail.

-Make sure you are using a secure Web site when submitting financial and sensitive information.

-Change passwords frequently. Don't use the same password on multiple sites.

-Regularly log into online accounts to monitor the activity and check statements.

-Use antivirus, antispam, and firewall software and keep your operating system and applications up-to-date.

(My colleague Larry Magid has more tips and a podcast interview with Symantec on avoiding phishing attacks.)

What can I do if I think I've been victimized by phishing?

The Anti-Phishing Working Group has a comprehensive site explaining exactly what steps people should take based on what type of information they have given out.

Where can I report phishing attempts?

You can forward suspected phishing e-mails to reportphishing@antiphishing.org and spam@uce.gov. Companies typically have an address to forward phishing examples to, such as "spoof@company.com." Always include the entire phishing e-mail. Complaints can be lodged with the Internet Crime Complaint Center at the FBI. ( cbsnews.com )

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