Don’t click the link

A public service announcement, and experiment with the human psyche. I repeat: Do not click the link!

I have no idea what the link below is, and really don’t care. It’s not related to MV but it was posted to a MV forum.

DO NOT CLICK THIS LINK

moc.liamgnull@2puorgycnan wrote:
FREE SOFTWARE DOWNLOAD ONLINE
http://freesoftwareonlinedownload.blogspot.com

I’m not kidding. This is no joke. I did not click it. I have no idea where it leads. I completely disclaim responsibility for what happens to you or your system if you follow that link. But I suspect a lot of people will click on it anyway. It’s a harmless looking link (compared to something like viruses.com/getonehere.htm) that passed through anti-malware defenses without warning. (Links do not generally carry viruses, the damage is done after go to a website that has the virus which can infect your system.) The three lines above were presented through a familiar discussion group and now they appear in a trusted blog. I will remind everyone that this is still the WWWild internet, and that link could go to the latest and greatest malware that could destroy your system as soon as your finger comes off the button.

"Risk" is measured as a value somewhere between my paranoia and your urge to prove me wrong. (That Tony guy is an idiot and obviously wrong about everything…) The stronger your urge to click that link, the higher your risk.

Stated another way, there are a billion links on the internet just like this, from unverified sources, leading to absolutely nothing beneficial, maybe the promise of something free. But people feel compelled to click the links anyway. People will take risks with their fingers on the mouse because there is a lack of mortal consequence and thus some feeling of personal safety. The true consequence may be the need to completely reinstall a PC, loss of work, data and/or time. Maybe the consequence is the loss of tender moments captured in pictures, or inspired moments captured in documents that you’ll never be able to re-write. These consequences are not considered by many people. For others, the known "risks" are considered trivial in comparison to the primal urge to click that button and see what’s on the other side.

I hope most of you have a low risk factor, and that everyone has the good sense to decline these questionable invitations whenever they appear.