Google ads misleading people.

[mk4]

I actually like Brave browser(please don't crucify me, Bitcointalk) due to it's built in ad blocker and privacy features, and that their mobile app is seriously kick-ass, but I heavily don't suggest turning on the "earn money viewing ads" feature. To actually claim the money, you'd have to submit KYC/AML information to Uphold; whereas, as you may know, KYC is almost always a really really bad idea.

Yup, I saw that some time ago. But didn't Brave mention they're working on an alternate way to withdraw? Didn't keep up with the progress after that.

I have no idea, but I surely hope so. It was really really surprising that with the current system, you'd have to go with a custodial. Hopefully they're trying to do it in a way that you can withdraw the funds the same way how you re-claim funds on other smart contract platforms. Having to submit KYC to receive crypto is just really counter intuitive to say the least.

[o_e_l_e_o]

What about Brave browser? I've been using it over a month now and it's definitely faster than Firefox and Chrome. And from what I've read about it, it looks pretty safe.

Brave is superior to Chrome, but inferior to a properly configured Firefox. It is faster than base Firefox because it has ad and third party content blockers built in. Once you install add ons in Firefox for these, Firefox is just as fast, if not faster.

As an alternative, if you prefer Google's search results, you can test out StartPage[1].

Startpage was bought over by an advertising company with a suspect privacy policy a few months ago. I've stopped using it. If you really need Google results, then use Searx and configure it to just search Google on your behalf.

How about these ads showing here in this forum? There is an option to turn these off, right?

Ads on the forum are not screened nor endorsed, as the warning underneath them shows. Hero and Legendary users get an option to disable them.

but Mozilla is known to accidentally break the addons installation process in the past so Waterfox is a better option for those people.

Waterfox is a security risk. It is maintained by one person, and his updates are often two to three weeks behind those of Firefox. This becomes a risk in instances of serious bugs or exploits being found.

[Baby Dragon]

Famous best quote for Newbies.
"If it's too good to be true, then it's probably not true (scam)"

This is why it's also important to use privacy leaning browsers and search engines like Duckduckgo. If you search about crypto in privacy mode, google won't be able to know were your interest lies and therefore crypto ads some of which are scams and ponzi schemes won't be targeted to you.

It's usually the problem with newbies these days, they tend to trust and believe something without analyzing how it will made an impact on their personal information and funds. They did not realized that they are getting derived by it's words which is completely full of sweet lies, it's just means that sometimes we're also the reason why we are ending up losing everything because of one mistake. Greediness can change someone's perception on everything particularly when it comes to money, people will surely grab an opportunity if it seems beneficial bu they don't think the possible outcomes of their own decisions. Newbies should always remember that quote because it will serve as guide on them, it will help them be cautious and attentive.

[Findingnemo]

Google becomes monopoly of web search engines but still they don't care about users by promoting such ads without researching enough about their intention so google is not the right place to search anything related to cryptos.

And also recently I can see lot of binary option trading from google ads which is not entirely a scam but most likely it should be called as since they claim you can double your money in no time.

[Aurora Castro]

Famous best quote for Newbies.
"If it's too good to be true, then it's probably not true (scam)"

This is why it's also important to use privacy leaning browsers and search engines like Duckduckgo. If you search about crypto in privacy mode, google won't be able to know were your interest lies and therefore crypto ads some of which are scams and ponzi schemes won't be targeted to you.

We must be careful when it comes to privacy, and Google has a lot of publicity that can affect us, and not only the advertising, also the page or the fact that it observes everything we do... I started using Duckduckgo because it seems safer Since Its main features is that it is based on Nginx, that is, low memory usage and high concurrency. In addition, they will not collect information from you when you search... It is very easy to be attacked by a virus or someone who observes everything you do, so I think it is better to be careful what we open and change your browser.

[Juggy777]

You shouldn't rely on Google to protect you from scams, be it from ads, emails, their app store, whatever. They do very little due diligence in to the things they host or promote. They care about money and collecting your data. They have zero interest in your security. Your security is your responsibility.

First of all, why anyone browses without an ad blocker is beyond me. There is literally no good reason not to use one, it's free, and it takes all of 30 seconds to install. uBlock Origin is the only ad blocker you will ever need, and it will block all Google ads. There are links to download it for all major browsers on their GitHub here: https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock.

Secondly, don't do a simple web search for any service, be that this forum, an exchange, a wallet (web or software download), etc. There is a high chance of ending up on a phishing or scam site. Bookmark the correct URL.

Thirdly, stop using Google. Use a search engine which will both respect your privacy and not assault you with ads for scams. DuckDuckGo or Searx are good alternatives.

@o_e_l_e_o you're absolutely correct about googles intentions, because all they care is about getting rich and they keep changing their policies to suit themselves. Also I’m using the bookmark tool for all my important sites, and I’m using an antivirus which often tells me when the site is not safe hence I recommend people to use antivirus for their devices. DuckDuckGo is indeed one of the best alternatives to google, but what I don’t like about them is that they’re an affiliate search engine.

https://help.duckduckgo.com/duckduckgo-help-pages/company/advertising-and-affiliates/

[CryptoYar]

Never assume that someone will protect you because you are the one who can save yourself from any trouble.


You can use an ad blocker to avoid this kind of trouble.

[NeuroticFish]

Never assume that someone will protect you because you are the one who can save yourself from any trouble.


You can use an ad blocker to avoid this kind of trouble.

..and with this you just assumed the ad blocker will save you always (meaning it will work perfectly every time)
This can be seen as quite a contradiction 

I don't deny the usefulness of a good browser and a good ad blocker. But the users also have to learn to keep their eyes open.
(Hence I find useful to have eye opener threads like this now and then.)

[ScamViruS]

Never assume that someone will protect you because you are the one who can save yourself from any trouble.


You can use an ad blocker to avoid this kind of trouble.

Purpose of such posts is to inform those who do not know these things. Since I posted there has been a lot of discussion, about how everyone can keep themselves safe.If the right information doesn't reach anyone, they won't know it. Maybe you know how to protect yourself, but not everyone. Many newbies don't know about this. Now if any newbies read this thread, they will know how to keep themselves safe.

[LbtalkL]

That's true last year I found out that google ads are showing Trezor fake ads if you search it on google, I don't know why google allow that without reviewing it. Looks like they are only concerns about money. So we need to be careful to check the url always, google is not safe anymore, they might be the one spreading phishing links by allowing scammers. I added ublock origin extension to block those fake ads.

[CryptoYar]

..and with this you just assumed the ad blocker will save you always (meaning it will work perfectly every time)
This can be seen as quite a contradiction 

I don't deny the usefulness of a good browser and a good ad blocker. But the users also have to learn to keep their eyes open.
(Hence I find useful to have eye opener threads like this now and then.)

I gave that advice! And I am not even saying that this post is useless, yes, it is good.
And believe me, it is not a big deal. Anyone can commit his crime through AdSense, Because it's a world of money.