Are eGroups Safe?

How safe is information in an eGroup, specifically Yahoo? Someone I know put an entire database of addresses and phone numbers of all the members in a particular group up (including my own) and I am really uncomfortable with it. He's a moron, so if anyone could give me some facts in laymans terms as to why this would be a bad idea, I would greatly appreciate it. It is a restricted group that requires pre-approved membership, and the archives are not public, like some eGroups have. I am mostly concerned with the database feature, rather than the email feature, though.

How safe is an eGroup?? About as safe as playing russian roulet with only one cylinder unloaded. A recent thread here (sorry, don't remeber which) showed where a google search could find cashed pages from yahoo groups, and read the information from that group.
Besides the membership itself is a risk. Do you know every member personally? Even then, one of those in the group could turn out to be a stalker, or e-mail address harvester for some spam company. Your address can be found easily by using a revearse number look up from your phone number. I never give my home phone to anybody or any institution on the web. I have a cell phone that I use for that.
I would demand that the list be modified to remove any information about me, if I was in that group.
Hope thisn helps you.

Oh, I know everyone in the group personally. I know all about the social engineering ways to get info, I am talking about more subtle, back door kinds of ways. Like someone just breaking into the group somehow and browsing at their leisure. Not someone we already approved into the group, I am talking strangers.

I read up on the group cache spying thread and tried it out with our group. The archived emails are not in a public archive, it is all private, so I couldn't read any of it without being logged into my account.

Hi Moxnix,

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How safe is an eGroup?? About as safe as playing russian roulet with only one cylinder unloaded

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Don't you mean a Colt .45 Auto :D

http://www.bitdefender.com have some useful free tools

Cheers

So based on that, did you try to set up a new account, just to verify that you can't without approval? I'm reaching way back in my memory banks here...but I thought there used to be a way to set up guest accounts without it...I could be wrong though....it's been a long time since I worked with yahoo groups.

Yup, I set used an alternate account I have and tried to get in, to no avail. Aren't there like packet sniffers or something like that that could be used to get that information, though?

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Don't you mean a Colt .45 Auto

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Yeppers, you are right nihil!!! That is even a better simily....a Colt .45 Auto, with one bullet taken out of the clip....LOL
windling, believe me, just because you couldn't access any confidential information with a google search does not mean another with a 'little' more knowledge could not. Any thing placed in any puplic or semipulic forum on the web is an open sourse to any one willing to spend the time and/or effort to view it.
Some one on 'AO' once said that the only perfect security is to compleatly disconnect your computer and seal it in a safe......and that can be broken in to.

Re:- moxnix, the only safe computer is uplugged, wrapped up in it's boxes, put into a safe and the safe buried where noone can get at it.
this is safe for a while !!!! Trust Noone, if you know EVERYONE on your clan, then store details on an old box that is not connected to the net unless required ?? Me, I'm a noob, but PC security has a long way to go before you can be CERTAIN !! at th rmoment you can only be Hopeful !!!