I have noticed the last few weeks I cannot access the forum. I tells me access denied. Is the server going down or am I crazy? Haha
I noticed it too. My browser also labels this site as "unsafe" sometimes. I wonder what's going on.
Same here. Have tried to log on today for almost 12 hours - "Access Denied"
These are two different issues. I will address them individually.
Access denied - We experienced two attacks known as Distributed Denial of Services (DDoS) attacks. These attacks do nothing to damage or access the website. There are purely 1,000 phony computer connections pinging the site at one time with the equivalent of guest access. These connections were coming out of China. It overloads the host server much like if we had thousands of real connections all clicking on pages to load and view them. If you look at the stats at the bottom of the forum it shows the most ever online at the same time was today and that number was 3069. After the first attack, I thought if might have been random and I just closely monitored the situation. The second attack 10 days later makes it clear it is targeted. We have taken steps and are winding up the final steps of adding another layer of protection against such attacks. The fix is fairly easy and It should be a non-issue once all changes are in place.
Browser Label of "Unsafe" - This is a very specific designation that has nothing to do with a danger to your pc. When making connections over the internet to banks or other sites where you transmit sensitive private data that can be captured, secure connections are provided to prevent a computer in the middle of you and the destination from grabbing account numbers, social security numbers or whatever else you want to keep from the eyes of anyone other than sources you trust with highly sensitive data. The information you save here does not identify you AND you post it for the public to see on a public forum. It would be absurd for a computer in the middle scenario to attempt capture of data that is readily available on display for anyone that visits the forum. That data serves no purpose other than educating individuals on Erectile Dysfunction and Peyronies Disease. So the "unsafe" is not a concern when you are transmitting public information.
I hope this is clear and answers your questions.
Hawk.
We are still resolving some final detail and appreciate your patience until we get everything resolved.
Hawk
While I haven't had problems with this site I would just like to recognize Hawk for doing all that he does. Thank you for all the time and effort you put into this.
Thanks for the kind words 2OldFords.
I could not do it without help from several faithful volunteers.
Everyone should now notice the site being faster and more responsive.
Hawk
Both issues that Tdix and Popopo brought up should now be resolved and without the bogus connections trying to slow the site down things should be noticeably faster.
8)
Just a few minutes ago I got the message that resources are all tied up. I was able to do back button then use the site as normal. Not complaining, just to let you know.
Thank you. You have put a lot of time into this site lately with your projects too. I want to remind everyone to keep your anti virus up to date so you are protected ANYWHERE you go. I have always maintained 3-4 anti virus, anti-malware programs stacked for years. Box store geeks will tell you that you cannot use 2 at the same time but I assure you that you can as long as they do not conflict with each other ( each thinks the other is a virus). Russia's Kaspersky conflicts with most other programs and often will not allow you to stack anti virus. McAfee also is incompatible when stacking several layers of antivirus as each will recognize the other as malware. Norton 360 is compatible with Malware Bytes and Spybot Search and Destroy. All 3 are very good. Ad Block Plus also is great to stop advertising. All of these can be stacked together and run at the same time w/o conflicts. AdBlock Plus comes in versions for whichever operating system (OS) you use. When cleaning up infected computers, I have found it common for 1 program to find issues others have not. Sorry you have to deal with these a$$#oles so the rest of us can have happy viewing Hawk. Thank you again sir. Cheers.
I feel it important to remind everyone to keep all your spyware software up to date. You may not notice an issue with your computer but many nasty bugs in circulation use your computer to spread their malicious wares unknowing to you. Keeping your own computer clean will prevent your computer from infecting someone else's computer unknown to you. I've noticed a lot of spam on several web forums lately. Hawk says it is getting to be a full time job to fight it here, so please guys and gals, keep your anti buggy software up to date. Cheers all.