PC myths: the truth

Posted on 14 Jul 2008 at 15:02

 

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We went to Bath to find out the truth. Engineers at the University of Bath's department of electronic and electrical engineering said the chances of bath-time electrocution were slim, provided you kept the power supply well away from the water.

"The most likely result is that the battery would short out and possibly catch fire," a department spokesperson told Shopper. "You'd be unlikely to be electrocuted, because the battery contacts are so close together you wouldn't be part of the circuit - a bit like a bird landing on a power line. But you don't want the power cable anywhere near water."

Whether or not you survived the shock, your laptop certainly wouldn't, so never mix water with Windows.

No-one can read your encrypted email
Credibility rating 7/10
Origin Security companies

The authorities hate having no idea what citizens are saying behind closed doors, so super-secure PGP encryption sends shivers up their spines. The FBI spent years trying to convince US courts that the exporting of PGP code should be banned. Ever since, conspiracy theorists have speculated that intelligence services can snoop on encrypted messages.

Internet legend states that large government departments, such as the US's National Security Agency, have sufficient computing power and expertise to crack a 1,024-bit key in days, if not hours. Furthermore, governments have some of their finest cryptologists working on clever algorithms to speed up the process. It's hard to imagine (and equally hard to prove) that spooks cannot break the code.

Security experts say that secret services wouldn't brag, even if they could crack encryption. While people believe they are communicating confidentially, they are more likely to divulge incriminating information.

You don't even need to crack emails to get details. "PGP emails are unreadable over the net, so your ISP can't read them, but [intercepting them is] still useful," says Richard Clayton, security expert at Cambridge University. "The subject line is not encrypted and there is often useful information in there. If we are talking terror organisations, what matters as much as what is said is who talks to whom. Traffic analysis can reveal who's in charge. Passphrases can be cracked using a dictionary attack. But, in general, if it's set up properly then cracking it is impractical."

Impractical, but is it impossible? If the authorities want to find out what our emails say, they probably will. Mafia man Nicodemo Scarfo was brought to justice after the FBI placed a keylogger on his computer and used it to harvest his PGP pass-phrase and keys.

I'm protected with PayPal
Credibility rating 7/10
Origin Small-print blindness

There's no doubt that PayPal is reassuring for millions of buyers who are worried about online payments. However, many people would be surprised by how little cover the company's buyer protection plan actually provides.

For a start, according to the policy, "PayPal Buyer Protection Policy only applies to items purchased on eBay". Problems experienced elsewhere are covered by the Buyer Complaint Policy, and purchases will not be covered unless there are sufficient funds in the seller's account. Although PayPal will reimburse buyers who qualify for buyer protection, large purchases leave the buyer exposed to fraudsters.

Expenditure over £150 is not covered unless you are buying from a tier-one seller. To qualify for the top cover, which is an underwhelming £500, the vendor must surpass 98 per cent positive feedback from a base of at least 50 previous buyers.