<html> <head> <meta content="text/html; charset=windows-1252" http-equiv="Content-Type"> </head> <body bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#000000"> On 10/07/15 19:05, Ralf Mardorf wrote: <blockquote cite="mid:20150710110513.20b37ef4@archlinux" type="cite"> <pre wrap="">On Fri, 10 Jul 2015 17:21:55 +1000, Rob Ward wrote: </pre> <blockquote type="cite"> <blockquote type="cite"> <pre wrap="">Eric Christopherson wrote: </pre> <blockquote type="cite"> <pre wrap="">Lately I've been getting this strange dialog saying System program problem detected Do you want to report the problem now? [Cancel] [Report problem...] </pre> </blockquote> <pre wrap=""> </pre> </blockquote> <pre wrap="">Just slightly off topic, but how we know when we respond to these alerts and we blithely type in our password to authorise the details to be sent off that we know that the alert is genuine and not just a faked up window to capture our password?? I am never logged in as root, but routinely use my password in these situations. I am not doubting Eric's problem exists, but I am often unsure about various alerts I get, and how secure my response is? </pre> </blockquote> <pre wrap=""> It's dubious if a window pops up, asking for your password, to send data through the Internet. I already would be careful with software that asks to send a bug report, when the root password isn't needed. Note, even the information of the full window size could be used to track you, that's why TOR browser warns you to not full size the TOR browser window. You might have stored some unencrypted passwords in files that only need user permissions, that's why on serious mailing lists, developers always mention to check log files, debug files etc. against passwords and to remove them before posting them in a bug report. Those bug report tools are simply spyware and should be abandoned. Even if the original bug report software should guarantee complete anonymity (but it doesn't!), you never know if it's the original software or phishing software. Turn of all "phone home" options, of all the software you are using, resp. be aware that you can't do this for e.g. some much used Web Browsers. However, be careful with bug reports, especially with bots that sends data to Canonical. Canonical is known for including spyware to Ubuntu. <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/ubuntu-spyware.en.html">http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/ubuntu-spyware.en.html</a> Regards, Ralf </pre> </blockquote> Cheers Ralf, I appreciate your feedback, much appreciated. What does it mean though when the Root password is required?? erh, requested?? Most of them occur in Application windows not browser windows? And if we don't use them, can we expect software to improve? Rob </body> </html>