Sneezy
join:2006-01-07
Calgary, AB
|  Shaw Blocking Websites?!?
Hi,
I have stumbled upon a very strange problem over the last week or so where I get an error message when I attempt to go to certain websites, or click links in some articles!
It takes me to an auto-created page called Webwasher and gives me a message along the lines of: the following website was blocked by your administrator due to the name/address of the wbsite or use of offensive words in the title.
Oh and the name of the supposed application is Webwasher Real-Time Classifier.
At the footer of the page it says:
generated 02/Apr/2008:17:45:31 -0600 by ic2.so.cg.int.shawcable.net (Webwasher 6.6.2 Build 2970)
Lastly, I thought this might just be happening on my laptop, but after checking the other two computers in the house, one a linux, I have pretty much eliminated the option that it could be a network trojan or anything along those lines and am starting to believe it is actually from Shaw...please help! It even does it for some websites in iTunes and no matter what browser I use, it still happens.
Thank you for any responses in advance. |
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AnonShawUser
join:2006-06-17
Calgary, AB | How about providing examples? It would really help out if we knew what websites you're visiting that are giving you these problems, so that we could check and see if it might just be on your end. |
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shaner
Premium
join:2000-10-04
Calgary, AB
edit:
April 2nd, @10:16PM
| Sorry about this post, but I thought I would test it out by simply typing in www.f__k.com.
Sure enough, look what I see.
quote:
Request Blocked by Real-Time Classifier
Your request to URL "http://www.f__k.com/adultbridge.aspx?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.f__k.com%2fdefault.pk" has been blocked by the Webwasher Real-Time Classifier. The page was classified as sexual, erotic or adult content (87% probability in URL) which is not allowed by your administrator at this time.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
generated 02/Apr/2008:20:11:49 -0600 by ic2.so.cg.int.shawcable.net (Webwasher 6.6.2 Build 2970)
What the hell is this??? I sure didn't ask Shaw to censor my internet. |
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AnonShawUser
join:2006-06-17
Calgary, AB | Are you using any sort of non-Shaw DNS server(such as OpenDNS), or are you routed through anything else, before your cable modem? |
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shaner
Premium
join:2000-10-04
Calgary, AB | No. Not at all. I don't have any filtering software either. |
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AnonShawUser
join:2006-06-17
Calgary, AB
| Are you logged in through a proxy? Something set up through your job, perhaps? If not, then I'd seriously suggest you call up Shaw's tech support and talk with them. They have a lot more tools available.
Also, could you run a tracert to the website and post the results? I'd be interested in seeing if there's something odd in the routing. |
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ErikRP
join:2004-11-06
Winnipeg, MB
| reply to Sneezy
No problems here. I put in a variety of obviously adult-themed website names and I was able to connect to each one.
I assume this isn't a case of Shaw Secure doing something to protect the sensibilities of its customers? I would be pretty annoyed if it were me, but I don't have any problem connecting. Maybe Calgarians are more easily offended by such material, and thus the filter? 
I'd be curious to know the answer, but in the meantime I have a bunch of new websites to browse through. (Kidding of course!) |
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shaner
Premium
join:2000-10-04
Calgary, AB | Hmmm... w w w.porn.c o m and it's other domain variants all get the same message too. |
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Ommina
join:2006-08-28
Medicine Hat, AB
| reply to Sneezy
There is another similar post here, this one from Winnipeg.
Same software, WP Shaw address.
I'd not be surprised to learn it is part of some "Safe Surfing" package. With which I'm cool, so long as it can be turned off. |
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Sneezy
join:2006-01-07
Calgary, AB
| reply to Sneezy
Yah so I can't figure this out. Suddenly, my Linux machine starts doing everything fine... but my windows computers are all fudged up.
Oh and i spent the last hour trying to figure out if it was something on my network at home that was doing it...I went to my buddy's house and he's on Shaw as well and he's getting the same crap. But he said he noticed it on some Torrent site but he assumed it was just down...
Okay this is really pissing me off, first Shaw raises the price of internet in Calgary as of my last bill, now they are censoring my connection?! Can someone plz help get to the bottom of this? |
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Googler
join:2007-01-16
Chilliwack, BC | here is the website for webwasher
»www.securecomputing.com/index.cf···&lang=en |
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Sneezy
join:2006-01-07
Calgary, AB
edit:
April 3rd, @12:08AM
| yah i've seen this website...its a software that I have no trace of on my computers (any of them)
I also tried connecting my computer directly to the modem and it hasnt changed anything.
Could it be something that shaw installed on their servers? |
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shaner
Premium
join:2000-10-04
Calgary, AB | Yeah, I don't have any trace of webwasher or Shaw Secure on my computer. |
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Sneezy
join:2006-01-07
Calgary, AB | this is B.S. I emailed shaw demanding an explanation. I also contacted a 2nd friend who says everything is working fine for him.
If this begins to screw with my XBLive I will be genuinely upset. |
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shaner
Premium
join:2000-10-04
Calgary, AB | I also started a thread in Canchat to get some thoughts there too.
»Is this ISP censorship? |
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ErikRP
join:2004-11-06
Winnipeg, MB
edit:
April 3rd, @09:40AM
| reply to Sneezy
I think before you go and rip Shaw a new one you might want to just ask to find out if they've added any, um, enhancements. Seeing as not everyone is experiencing this, but it is happening in various places (doesn't sound like a test roll-out) it sounds like it might not be Shaw. |
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Sneezy
join:2006-01-07
Calgary, AB
edit:
April 3rd, @02:43PM
| I emailed Shaw regarding the issue yesterday. Its odd because they usually reply back within a couple of hours no matter what time of the day.
However, they have yet to reply to me, its either that they are really busy or they are ignoring it.
Eitherway, I'm going to have to see whats going on because if they are actually blocking service then I guess they are going to be hearing from me for a while. When I first started this forum, I wasnt expecting anyone else to be having this problem, but its interesting that they are. Regardless, after attempting to get to the bottom of this on my laptop, I can no longer access the internet through my home network using the laptop AT ALL, and have to resort to using the home computer...the linux machine seems to be doing everything fine tho. Its just the ones running Windows XP, Vista, or Mac OSX.
The irony of it all is that I was reading an article about 2 weeks ago on Engadget.com about AT&T and Comcast installing internet filters and beginning to majorly throttle P2P apps in the states. So I wonder if thats related... |
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rodst
Premium
join:2002-10-06
Victoria, BC | reply to Sneezy
Still waiting for those tracerts. |
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Sneezy
join:2006-01-07
Calgary, AB
| Here are the results of a TRACERT I ran on an afforementioned website (as mentioned by shaner in post 3)
The bad parts of the URL are obviously blocked.
_________________________________________________
Microsoft(R) Windows DOS
(C)Copyright Microsoft Corp 1990-2001.
C:\DOCUME~1\USER>tracert www.f__k.com
Tracing route to f__k.com [8.15.231.114]
over a maximum of 30 hops:
1 1 ms 1 ms 1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 * * * Request timed out.
3 8 ms 8 ms 12 ms rd1no-ge7-0-0-1.cg.shawcable.net [64.59.142.147]
4 22 ms 6 ms 7 ms rc1no-ge6-0-0.cg.shawcable.net [66.163.77.5]
5 8 ms 8 ms 8 ms rc1so-pos15-0.cg.shawcable.net [66.163.77.9]
6 21 ms 21 ms 21 ms rc1wh-pos12-0.vc.shawcable.net [66.163.76.10]
7 27 ms 23 ms 23 ms rc1wt-pos1-0-0.wa.shawcable.net [66.163.76.2]
8 26 ms 24 ms 25 ms te-3-4.car3.Seattle1.Level3.net [4.71.152.25]
9 25 ms 34 ms 35 ms ae-32-52.ebr2.Seattle1.Level3.net [4.68.105.62]
10 59 ms 70 ms 72 ms ae-2.ebr2.Denver1.Level3.net [4.69.132.54]
11 79 ms 72 ms 57 ms ae-3.ebr3.Chicago1.Level3.net [4.69.132.62]
12 78 ms 85 ms 90 ms ae-2.ebr2.Washington1.Level3.net [4.69.132.70]
13 87 ms 90 ms 90 ms ae-92-92.csw4.Washington1.Level3.net [4.69.134.1
58]
14 79 ms 81 ms 78 ms ae-43-99.car3.Washington1.Level3.net [4.68.17.19
7]
15 249 ms 199 ms 212 ms CWIE-LLC.car3.Washington1.Level3.net [4.79.168.3
8]
16 77 ms 78 ms 79 ms 8.15.230.68
17 * * * Request timed out.
18 * * * Request timed out.
19 * * * Request timed out.
20 * * * Request timed out.
21 * * * Request timed out.
22 * * * Request timed out.
23 * * * Request timed out.
24 * * * Request timed out.
25 * * * Request timed out.
26 * * * Request timed out.
27 * * * Request timed out.
28 * * * Request timed out.
29 * * * Request timed out.
30 * * * Request timed out.
Trace complete.
_________________________________________________ |
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Sneezy
join:2006-01-07
Calgary, AB
|  reply to Sneezy
Hey guys!!
I just got a reply back to my email from Shaw. It simply said: "We appologize for the inconvenience caused, and the problem has now been fixed."
And literally as of 5 minutes ago, everything is back to normal!! So it was them!! Okay now im really confused...  |
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