This may have the computer literate chuckling but here goes.
If I have a web page open and I then go and open up outlook express to read the mail, is it at all possible for something in the open web page to read my email window?
If I have more than one web page window open is it possible for a “malicious page” to read the contents of another window, say if I enter a password?
I try to run a tight ship with, where possible, Java and Active X turned off.
“In an ideal world” the answer to your questions is no. Unfortunately, we don’t live in an ideal world. For example, in the last couple weeks, 2 sep. bugs were found in MS-Internet Explorer that allows a nasty web page designer to do anything to your computer just by loading the page. Read/write any files, plant trojans, erase your hard drive, etc.
So just by browsing, all sorts of bad stuff might happen, even if you have the latest updates, since there could be hundreds of unreported bugs out there. Note that you can lessen your risk some by using a browser less likely to be targeted, but presumably all the popular browsers are going to hit from time to time.
But keep your software updated, esp. virus scanner, run system checks regularly, watch what kind of sites you visit, etc. “Let’s be careful out there.”
Is this actually reading what’s on my C: drive, or is it just showing it to me, without taking information back to the server?
I don’t know. I refuse to click on that link. That’s what being careful is all about.
That page is only showing you what is on your PC without sending it to the server. It’s just an advanced way of doing something that is a common feature on most browsers today. You can do it by typing “c:” in your browser’s location bar.