Opera Browser Update

The latest Opera Browser update means that now the top three browsers used have anti-phishing software available. Opera calls their version "Fraud Protection".

"When Opera Fraud Protection is enabled, you contact a server at Opera every time you request a Web page. HTTPS sites are checked via an encrypted channel, while IP addresses on the local intranet will never be checked. The server checks the domain name of the requested page against live whitelists compiled by GeoTrust, and blacklists compiled by GeoTrust and Phishtank. Opera's fraud protection server downloads blacklists directly from Phishtank, and sends a query to GeoTrust.

The domain name is forwarded to GeoTrust in plain text, together with a hash of the URL, if the site you are checking is served by HTTP. The full URL is not sent, but a fingerprint of the full URL is needed in case you visit a dangerous page on a site that is otherwise harmless. The reply is an XML document containing the trust level of the domain. This reply will be cached for a time indicated by the Opera's fraud protection server. Information about well-trusted sites can be cached for a longer period than for unknown sites."

In other Opera news, a free trial version of the Opera browser for Wii will be available on Friday, December 22. That should be of interest to the couch potatoes.

http://www.opera.com/docs/fraudprotection/