CallingID Support: Fequently Asked Questions

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	What is CallingID Toolbar?
	Who needs CallingID?
	What browsers does CallingID support?
	Will CallingID support other browsers?
	What does the term CallingID mean?
	How does CallingID work?
	Why is the site I see in the address bar different from the site I see in CallingID?
	Why does CallingID periodically connect to the Internet even when I'm not browsing?

What is CallingID Toolbar?
CallingID Toolbar is a free security application designed to keep you safe and informed while browsing. It shows you the physical address of the real owner of the site you're viewing. It evaluates every site you visit and warns you when you access dangerous or fraudulent sites.

Who needs CallingID?
With the steady rise in identity theft, phishing and other crimes online CallingID has become a must for every Internet user.

It is estimated that over 2,000 Internet users fall victim to Internet crime every day. Victims range from Internet novices to online security professionals. Every day new ways to swindle and steal are thought up, and there simply is no way for users to keep an eye out for fraud while using the Internet efficiently.

Users often respond to emails and other solicitations or search results thinking they are accessing a company and/or responding to a reasonable request. The exposure is as simple as signing up for a newsletter and providing a standard user ID and password. It can be as easy as responding to information verification. It can be as confusing as trying to handle an apparent billing problem and identifying yourself. All these are potential devices scammers and identity thieves employ to get the information they need to overtake your identity.

Many attempts have been made to protect users from the criminals who try to take advantage of the anonymity provided by the Internet. However, most of the tools currently available react slowly when a new scam or phishing site is launched and often block sites you actually wish to do business with because of arbitrary access rules.

Here is where CallingID comes into the picture. CallingID evaluates all the information about the site you're visiting and displays a warning when the site may be fraudulent. Now users don't need to investigate every site they visit - a quick glance at the CallingID toolbar is enough to judge if a site is trustworthy or fraudulent. At the user's request CallingID can show a summary of all the information used to make the assessment of the site, thus allowing users to gauge the site for themselves without running complex tests and queries about the site owner.

For more information about who's in danger of falling prey to Phishing scams please read the article: "Research reveals phishing hooks"

What browsers does CallingID support?
CallingID currently supports Internet Explorer 5.0+ and Firefox 1.0+.

Will CallingID support other browsers?
CallingID will support other browsers, including Avant (which is already supported in CallingID Link Advisor), Opera and Netscape in future editions. The exact release dates for each browser will be announced later this year.

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What does the term CallingID mean?

	"Caller-ID" is a service that provides the name and telephone number of a caller, which appear on a display as the call is being received.
	"CallingID" is a service that displays the name of the person you are calling.
	CallingID Toolbar is a service that displays the name, address, server location, etc. of any site you visit.

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How does CallingID work?
CallingID uses many different sources to find site owners, to verify that the owner is a real organization and to deliver the most accurate information to all users. Running complex verification tests on the CallingID servers, Cross-Searching several international information databases, Advanced Risk Assessment conducted by the toolbar when the page is loaded and by the CallingID team are all pooled together to give you the most informed and accurate assessment available.

Proactive users can send their concerns, information and opinions directly to the CallingID Risk Assessment Team for assessment by clicking the REPORT button, thus increasing the reliability of the information presented. For more information on how to report site information please click here.

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Why is the site I see in the address bar different from the site I see in CallingID?
The site you see in the address bar is usually the site your browser connects to in order to bring the web page. However, the page may include several components. Each component can send data to several sites including sites other than the site you see in the address bar. CallingID shows you where the data you enter in a specific field on the web page will go.

You may choose to see all the sites that may receive information from you by selecting 'Show all sites that may receive data from a page I visit' in 'Advanced Options'.

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Why does CallingID periodically connect to the Internet even when I'm not browsing?
CallingID Toolbar runs several tests on sites you visit to make sure they're safe. Most of these tests are done by our servers. In an effort to insure your privacy, some of these tests are perfomed by your toolbar, without sending any requests to the CallingID servers.

To conduct these tests your CallingID toolbar needs access to up-to-date internal tables. These tables include:

	List of known URLs used for phishing
	Geographic location of sites

To make sure your toolbar provides you with the best possible information, these tables are periodically updated. This keeps your toolbar running smoothly, your information safe, your privacy protected and minimizes communication with CallingID's servers while you browse the Internet.

While some other solutions send every URL you visit to their servers to check for phishing, CallingID stores some tables on your computer. Keeping tables locally also means that when you visit different pages within the same site CallingID doesn't need to communicate with the servers, giving you a faster, safer browsing experience.

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Need more assistance?
Please contact us at support@callingid.com or visit our Forum

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