Curiosity killed the Internet cat — malware, scams, tragedies and YOU
We can’t help it — We just have to know. And that’s no longer enough because in this age where everything that happens anywhere almost never escapes a digital camera, we also have to see it all. When tragedy strikes, we’re no longer just curious onlookers feeding our morbid curiosity, but we’re all armed with cameras in our pockets and powerful phones that will help us broadcast it to a million other equally curious eyes. It’s human nature and it’s fascinating how Internet criminals seem to understand it and thrive on its predictability. 
The recent killing of a Sea World trainer led to a flurry of searches for videos of the incident, which promptly led to malware and viruses. This isn’t the first time that the formula of equal parts tragedy and human curiosity yielded guaranteed results for criminals seeking to spread viruses and other threats. It happened a few weeks ago with interest in the video of Nodar Kumaritashvili’s fatal luge accident at the 2010 Winter Olympics, the Haiti Earthquake, Erin Andrews peephole videos and Michael Jackson’s death. The list goes on. It’s beginning to happen again as people look for pictures or videos of the destruction caused by the earthquake that hit Chile today.
What this really tells us is that the people behind Internet attacks, viruses and malware are savvy marketers and astute observers of human nature. Tragedies aren’t their only trick; they have mastered the art of recognizing every curious human flaw ranging from narcissism (the “”This you????” Twitter fishing attacks) to greed (the “make money posting links on Google” scam ads). It’s almost as if the scammers sit with a poster of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in front of them & monitor trending Internet topics and search terms. It’s that simple — find the right topic and target the right need. The curious Internet users will make the rest happen. What an air-tight business model!
We are easy targets because we thirst for instantaneous access to information and for quick solutions to vexing problems that plague us. Further, because of the high speed mobile Internet/multitasking/information overload society we live in, we tend to make decisions on what links to click on and where to share our information within fractions of a second. You don’t need to be stupid to be fooled — you just need to be distracted. Have you ever paused and thought about what the simple act of clicking a link or sharing information is really saying about you? The next time curiosity seems to be getting the better of you, ask yourself “Do I really need to know and see his?”, “How is watching a video of someone being killed or humiliated adding value to my life?”, “Do I really need whiter teeth, a flatter stomach, or a chance to make money from home?” Maybe you do, but if it sounds to be good to be true, it probably is. If you still choose to proceed, and get burned, unfortunately that may be the only way you were meant to learn a lesson in Internet safety.
