New HobbyKing website - a Security Nightmare!

[Hands0n]

There is an ongoing discussion on Facebook here --> https://www.facebook.com/groups/fpvuk/?multi_permalinks=1130811400287706&notif_t=group_highlights&notif_id=1477636697086034

It may be nothing much at all, perhaps they';re using Google or Beibo Ads services that can be invasive in the background ... However ...

It looks like the HK website has either been compromised or has intentionally been revamped to be highly invasive of your browser and system caches.   Here are a few snippets from the discussion ... You might want to research browser protection against the tech they seem to have deployed ...

2 minutes to cache the page and my firewall is screaming at me due to so many tracking cookies attempting to access my browser data. ****** site is a data sniffing joke and navigation is bollocks too. It shouldn';t be live if it';s not finished.

It';s trying to pull data from browser history and not just hobbyking own cookies either. It';s snooping for anything it can find and trying to Inbed Google ad services to apps and search engine banners. It is more intrusive than a torrent site. Is Chinese govt looking for a new army for a DDoS attack?

Wireshark shows 5 IP redirects to China and DNS spoofing so hobbyking are using colocated servers for the site but God knows who is trying to draw data from a link. That';s me off using paypal or bank details for a while.

I';m going through my firewall log files and security sandbox and the site is riddled. It';s trying to upload data from browser cache, other Web tabs I git open, email address lookups by wildcard searching for @ signs in my recent documents. Luckily I got a good firewall or they might as well pay my car insurance for me next week as they will know more about me than I do.

[Hands0n]

If you';re worried about the invasiveness of websites you should take a look at Ghostery browser extension ... https://www.ghostery.com/

[Powernumpty]

Thanks for the heads up, my browsing is currently through a proxy with squidguard, no script and add-block etc. but I would have considered Hobbyking sort of average risk, could have nbeen wrong there.
The trouble with reputational checks likemany AV use are just after a revamp like this, maybe best to avoid it for a few days or use a live linux disk (or VM) so they have nothing to snoop.

[Doug]

If you';re worried about the invasiveness of websites you should take a look at Ghostery browser extension ... https://www.ghostery.com/

Is it worth having Danny or is it just another one of those things that claim a lot and deliver not a lot?

[Hands0n]

Before




After Enabling

[Hands0n]

Is it worth having Danny or is it just another one of those things that claim a lot and deliver not a lot?

I';ve had good results with Ghostery in Chrome browser.  Worth a look. If you don';t like then you can pull it.  Some crafty websites wont load if you block trackers and ads. Those you have  to take a view on whether to block or not.

[guest325]

Thanks for the heads up Danny, now installed and as you say quite a few undesirable extensions.
p.s. there';s 5 on here for social media!!!

[guest325]

Just tried to login to HK on a Ghostery tab and it wouldn';t let me unless I enabled cookies, looks like HK is off limits for me then; not happy about this degree of invasiveness!!!
Another nice thing about Ghostery is that I no longer get Ads at the bottom of the page and it';s much faster than before I started using it.

[H_Simpson]

Trouble is, the internet is run on advertising, so you risk throwing the baby away with the bathwater?

[Powernumpty]

Use private browsing (Ctr-Shift-P) if you want to look at the Hobbyking site but not record what you looked at.
I think the bigger danger than a cookie from HK is sites cross reading info and more tracking which can be handled by Ghostery or AV browser protection.

Most that you don';t pay to enter, have to recover money some way so if you want the site to continue a bit of advertising is a fair payback.

I even sit through crapy adverts on Youtube channels that I like but don';t want to actually pay money to see (like RCModelReviews).

[H_Simpson]

I suppose it depends on ones perspective vis-a-vis conspiracy theories etc, I had ad blocker on for a while, but actually ended up kind of ';missing'; some of the ad';s!  Especially now agencies are targeting with cookie driven search based/preferenced ad';s, they do appear to be more relevant to the kind of stuff I look out for.  Snooping or assisting?  You decide!

[Hands0n]

Trouble is, the internet is run on advertising, so you risk throwing the baby away with the bathwater?

My view is that Advertising, targeted or otherwise, just as long as people have the option to not see it.  Where I have the problem is where the methods used to harvest data go far beyond what page you';re looking at and extend into snooping at your site cookies, browser history, email and social media, essentially profiling the individual.    We object [strongly] to profiling in other areas of life, so there is no need for such to be acceptable on the Internet just because ...

The UK ICO says that individual';s information held by companies must be proportionate to the intended use of it, and only retained for as long as there is a very specific need to do so.  Yet the current broad collection and use of a person';s data, even if it is anonymised, is highly suspect, particularly where it comes to advertising. 

It is generally illegal to cause a nuisance - unless it is unsolicited advertising on the Internet?  How does that work? ::)

[Bajadre]

Don';t see what the big deal is about a site reading your cookies tbh all I know is if I hover over an item for 2mins I get it cheaper on HK cant beat that 

the more crap you install on your system the slower its gonna run,i don';t run any AV or addon software and haven';t formatted in 5 yrs and my system still boots in under 10secs 

[Hands0n]

Cookies will provide telltales about where you';ve been and what you';ve looked at.  None of that may matter to you.  But it does represent a rather gross invasion of your privacy. 

Whatever your thoughts on the matter it is always wise to at least know the Pros and Cons.  Here';s some useful reading matter:

http://www.allaboutcookies.org/privacy-concerns/

[ched]

Looks like the UK Hobby King site is down!!! Hopefully they are fixing the intrusiveness of their code.

[Powernumpty]

I think the revamp must be to log what people look for then consider stocking that locally. I wasn';t really using the main Chinese site because I didn';t want to order small stuff and get the delivery cost, or more expensive stuff and get the caned duty.
Now I can barely see the point in looking at the site until I know what I want from other sites or searches, I';m just not going to wade through shed lads of stuff that is not available or economic to buy in the UK.

While just checking I picked one item from scrolling a 1806 motor (in the "22mm to 27mm" category FFS)
"Quanum MT Series 1806 2300KV Brushles..." it says OUT STOCK but if you click on it the thing is in stock US west.

I sort of get that but can see other stuff that it "OUT STOCK" but is showing in stock in HK base.

Can';t work it out, but at this stage I';m less likely to be using the site.

[insx]

By the way, I just did a refresh on this site (MRUK) and watched several different domains pop up in my status bar.

[guest325]

Banggood and Gearbest are the worst for tracking cookies, funnily enough Hobbywow have the least cookies I';ve seen on most sites including this one!!!

[nate80]

I only just had the chance to check out the new website and... Wow.  Hobbyking';s new site is even worse than the previous build!

I thought nothing could make me feel less appreciated and more cheated than the old ';one-time-offer'; deals that HK provided to everyone willing to empty their cache and refresh their webpage.  Especially after telling its loyal customers that they would receive special Platinum only deals: "Majority of the products have prices with better discounts".

Turns out I was wrong.  The new website has managed to make me feel even more cheated!  I click on a product which opens a new page.  The product has a price.  A supposedly standard price.  I decide to look about the site first and leave that webpage.  When I return to the product it';s gone up by £4!  I refresh the page and the price changes, over and over again.  I never see the originally provided price, but I get close to it and decide to click the buy now button.  But when I visit my cart the price is not the one I agreed on but a random higher price!

Nothing makes you feel more cheated than openly trying to overcharge you before then offering a price that they won';t even honour!

On top of that the site';s buggy, slow and has even worse navigation than before.  The designers have obviously bolted new code on top of the previous build.  They should have scrapped the lot and started from scratch.

Proper shame, I reckon.   

[ched]

I only just had the chance to check out the new website and... Wow.  Hobbyking';s new site is even worse than the previous build!
Proper shame, I reckon.   

Not to mention the removal of the feature to list stock from UK or EU warehouse! Unless its just hidden that bit from me?

[nate80]

And another thing.  How can you select which warehouse you want to buy from now?  The previous website allowed you to select from a drop down box which warehouse you wanted to purchase a particular item from.  This could be very handy as sometimes it was cheaper to purchase 4 items all from the EU warehouse rather than 1 from the UK warehouse and 3 from the EU warehouse  - not only in relation to the product cost, but also due to the postal cost.

It seems the new website chooses the warehouse for you?

Not to mention the removal of the feature to list stock from UK or EU warehouse! Unless its just hidden that bit from me?

Just posted as you did ched999uk!  lol.  Exactly what you said.   

I don';t think I';ll be using Hobbyking that much any more.

[hoverfly]

Ditto, total P.I.T.A.  half the other search functions are fkuced.

[guest325]

Biggest mistake they have ever made and I reckon it';s going to cost them dearly this time of the year where people are spending on Christmas presents. I tried to buy a glider last night, it was just over £60 but postage turned out to be  £29 - no prizes for guessing what I did!!!
HK will not be getting any of my custom until they get their collective act together!!!

[Hands0n]

I don';t  even consider or think of using HK these days - haven';t for simply ages.  Their shipping prices are extraordinary, even considering any opportunistic eBay sellers who siphon up stock.

[Powernumpty]

Thought I';d check it out.

Just looking at the weekly "deals which aren';t" currently being sent to me in dollars.

From there went to browse some others planks to see what was offered in stock in the UK, every one I looked at was offered in Dollars but from the Russian wharehouse? tried about three, selected GBP as currency and then at random - Durafly - found a spitfire with UK stock, price was shown in Australian Dollars.

I can';t see myself doing much business with them at this rate.