Forum Moderators: phranque
Also, you may want to consider posting in the forum about affiliate sales; [webmasterworld.com...] , the topic may be better understood there.
That is a tough one and malware is certainly pandemic on the web but I think we are starting to turn the corner with public awareness. Browsers like FireFox are helping.
Just remember this, if it was that big of a problem, the affiliate industry would collapse and new methods would have to be created for online businesses to get traffic.
If crime stopped people from starting new businesses, would there be ANY convenience stores?
IMHO - many people like to blame others for their problems.
I think this problem has been exaggerated or misunderstood by some,
As moishe points oout - if it was that big of a problem the industry wouldn't exist.
I think part of the problem is with the internet - it is sometimes hard to figure out why a site's earnings has dropped. Sometimes people will say things like "Well I used to be making $XXXX and nothing else has changed, but earnings are down 40%" and then assume it is due to skimming or malware.
In brick and mortars counterfeiting happens, but it is low, same with other similar types of problems like intellectual property theft and things of that nature.
Unless you want to sell a product to webmasters to "detect malware" or something like that - or want to become known as an expert on this issue, or are a consumer advocate - I would recommend not worrying about it.
There are others out there worrying for you. It isn't worth your time.
It would be like you worrying about how to stop counterfeiting, but actually harder - as you could detect counterfeit notes, but there is really nothing you can do from the malware front without going legal & spending a ton of time and money on it.
Some merchants don't understand the problem or don't care, but savvy merchants are aware and do everything they can to make sure that they're not paying commissions to parasites. Those are the merchants you want to promote.
