After talking to some people about running BOINC they tell me that they don't like the idea of a program that is downloading and uploading stuff with out them knowing it. Most are worried about someone breaking into the computer and getting their info like bank accounts and things.

I have tryed to tell them that this should not happen (has not as far as I know) Plus I have told them they have 100% control as to when BOINC goes "online" and what it download (as far as what project is downloaded). I tell them that only info for the project they pick will be thansfered. Plus what time of day or night it goes "online".

However some don't trust it. They want to be sure it's not going to hurt their PC.

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Anyone can start a BOINC project.
The general advice is not to just attach left and right to everything that's new. A lot of the new projects don't even have a good description of what they do. Try to get information about the project before attaching. If you don't trust it, don't run it.

The newer BOINC 6 series makes use of Sandboxing. In short, this means that the client and applications running under it cannot read anything outside the designated Data directory.

So unless you store sensitive information in one of BOINC's own files in the Data Directory, neither BOINC nor the applications can get to that information.

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After talking to some people about running BOINC they tell me that they don't like the idea of a program that is downloading and uploading stuff with out them knowing it. Most are worried about someone breaking into the computer and getting their info like bank accounts and things.

BOINC doesn't leave anything open for "someone to break into the computer". Your computer communicates with the project, not the other way around. You just have to trust the projects you attach to.

Analogy: BOINC is not leaving your house window open, where thieves could get in. You are letting some specific people come in (the projects you attached to), and then only to one room of the house (if you enable "protected application execution" when installing).

Sure, that project could be malicious. But then so could any other website. And it's highly unlikely none of the people you talked to had ever downloaded a program from a website and run it. To do that, they'd have to trust the website. Attaching a BOINC project is basically the same. When you attach, you're downloading software from it and running it. How to know if they're trustable? Well, how did they know if random-website-they-got-a-program-from was trustable?

Also, it doesn't "download and upload without them knowing"; there is a list of "transfers" in the manager, after all :P And then again, just because something uploads and downloads doesn't mean it's doing something bad. I'd be more worried about the "running code on your computer" part than the "downloading and uploading" part... And then again, many programs are already "downloading and uploading stuff" without you knowing exactly what it is. Web browsers do quite a bit of downloading from servers other than the website you're connecting to; for example, to get ads :P

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I'm thinking about using that question in part of my masters project. I want to research find out why people don't sign up and how to get the word out there more. I know people who will donate Blood yet won't sign up for this. I want to know why.

Just a quick comment, on BOINC recruitment:

Enlisting newcomers to BOINC, for me, has been a slow, but sure process. Most (approx. three, in the last year) have been made in the local restaurant and coffee-house (I am retired.). The reasons for volunteering BOINC info. have been varied, but most have been receptive. They all, without exception, have been new acquaintances, which would be expected.

The trick, for me (and, possibly, for some others), has been to bring up
the subject only when I think there has been a definite need to be met, on the
part of the other person.

Although this approach isn't very aggressive, I hope it's addition can
be taken as a word of encouragement to the overall effort, with its variety
of approaches.

I shall continue to gently beat the bushes, on behalf of BOINC!

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