BigString.com ...

[Digital Prophet]

I did a search for this and got bumpkis, so I apologize if this is a repeat.

But I was reading my favorite mag's site (www.popphoto.com) and saw a tip about BigString.com (http://www.bigstring.com). The gist of it is that this place offers a special service for email. By using this site's services you can send email whose content can't be saved, printed or forwarded. Or so I read. So the idea is that you could send proofs or quotes and set them to self delete or recall them for editing.

Or so they say. If it is true this could be a great thing for photographers.

- Digital Prophet -

[meow]

Never believe things like this. I love this kind of scams so I couldn't refrain from signing up to see "how they do it". :mrgreen:

Here's the test mail I sent to myself. Be my guest. The smilie and the text above it is what I put in.
http://ababa.net/stuff/Bigstring_Expiring_Email_Scam.html

They've turned the text into an image that they use as a background image. It's overlaid with a transparent image. If I disable HTML in my email client all I get is the the link to view the message on the web. The whole thing is of course loaded from their servers. That's how they can make it "expire".

If you try Save Image As the transparent one is what you get. Most browsers don't print background images by default but if you turn that option on it probably works. Print Screen works excellent as ever. View Source to find the paths and save what you want works. Picking the whole lot out from your cache works. They've used a few of the usual simple tricks used to "protect" content/source on the Web but left more, and likewise ineffective ones, out.

Put bigstring.com on your backlist of Internet lowlifes that try to scam money from people. :twisted:

[Digital Prophet]

Pft. What a gyp. Oh well. It was a thought. :oops:

- Digital Prophet -