US internet providers hijacking users' search queries

Mon Aug 8 23:47:23 UTC 2011

On Aug 8, 2011 4:24 PM, "Christopher Morrow" <morrowc.lists at gmail.com>
wrote:
>
> On Sat, Aug 6, 2011 at 10:03 PM, Scott Helms <khelms at ispalliance.net>
wrote:
> > Not trying to be obtuse, but none of the technical docs you cite appear
to
> > talk about HTTP proxies nor does the newswire report have any technical
> > details.  I have tested several of the networks listed in the report and
in
> > none of the cases I saw was there HTTP proxy activity.  Picking up on
> > WCCP/TCS isn't that hard (I used to install those myself) so unless
there is
> > some functionality in IOS and/or JUNOS that allows I don't see it
happening.
> >  Paxfire can operate all of the proxies they want but the network
> > infrastructure has to be able to pass the traffic over to those proxies
and
> > I don't see it (on at least 3 of the networks cited).
>
> barefruit/paxfire/nominum/etc all do essentially the same thing:
> 1) install a dns-appliance in-line (some form of in-line, there are
> lots of options, it's not really important in the end which is used)
> between 'cache resolver' and 'user'. (198.6.1.1 has a paxfire
> appliance literally in-line between it's customer facing port and the
> world)
>
> 2) chose a set/subset of queries to falsify answers for (nxdomain
> only? autosearch.msn.com? *.google.com? *?)
>
> 3) run a farm of servers somewhere else (in the case of paxfire they
> are the jomax.net servers:
>  ;; QUESTION SECTION:
> ;asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com.     IN      A
> ;; ANSWER SECTION:
> asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 60   IN      A       64.158.56.49
> asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 60   IN      A       63.251.179.49
> ;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
> asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 65535 IN     NS      WSC2.JOMAX.NET.
> asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 65535 IN     NS      WSC1.JOMAX.NET.
>
>  In the case of barefruit it's another complex and in the case of
> nominum it's a third complex ...
>
> 4) accept http/https/etc on the complex of servers, funnel you an
> answer which is essentially 'hostname == search-query'. For non-http
> most of these complexes are SUPPOSED to not permit a connect to
> happen... for jomax at least they don't accept tcp/443, they do accept
> 25 though :(
>
> 5) profit if users click on these results.
>
> It's not black magic, it's annoying and wrong for some versions
> (depending upon your ethics I guess?) of wrong :( I wish ISP's would
> stop doing this, and it seems that some folk have luck twisting arms
> at ISP's to make this stop.
>
> -chris
>

Some people believe the search results are a better user experience than the
error page they would otherwise receive.  The "awesome bar" is a similar
feature....imho

Cb