harbormaster
04-24-2004, 06:10 PM
For many years, the big problem has been software viruses written by malicious hackers finding their way into our personal computers to set up shop with their own agendas. But today we face a new and even more insidious threat:
Internet companies, whose apparent "business model" is the exploitation of consumer trust and ignorance, are sneaking their spyware systems into our machines for their own purposes.
What is Spyware?
Spyware is ANY SOFTWARE which employs a user's Internet connection in the background (the so-called "backchannel") without their knowledge or explicit permission.
The news media has carried many stories about Real Networks who were reportedly caught 'red handed' secretly profiling their users' listening habits, Aureate/Radiate and Conducent Technologies whose advertising, monitoring, and profiling software sneaks into our machines without our knowledge or permission, Comet Cursor which secretly tracks our web browsing, GoHip who hijacks our web browser and alters our eMail signatures . . . and many other hopeful and exploitive newcomers on the horizon.
When confronted with their actions, such companies invariably say "read the fine print, what we're doing is spelled out there and the user agreed." That's odd, if the users understood and agreed, I wonder why those users are so surprised and upset when someone tells them — in plain language — exactly what's going on?
Anonymous Surveillance for Profit
Online profiling & tracking "privacy statements", and backchannel "spyware" license agreements, invariably adopt identical cop-out terminology. They state that "no personally identifiable information" is being collected. It has been shown that in many instances this is an outright lie in itself, but even when, or if, it is true, I submit that these "identity stealing profilers" are nonetheless profiting from valuable information that has been stolen from us without our informed consent.
You can do something about it
Download Spybot (http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?page=mirrors) or Adaware (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/) and install these on your system!!
Ask Scot Pearson how much these suck!
If anyone needs any help with this let me know.
Internet companies, whose apparent "business model" is the exploitation of consumer trust and ignorance, are sneaking their spyware systems into our machines for their own purposes.
What is Spyware?
Spyware is ANY SOFTWARE which employs a user's Internet connection in the background (the so-called "backchannel") without their knowledge or explicit permission.
The news media has carried many stories about Real Networks who were reportedly caught 'red handed' secretly profiling their users' listening habits, Aureate/Radiate and Conducent Technologies whose advertising, monitoring, and profiling software sneaks into our machines without our knowledge or permission, Comet Cursor which secretly tracks our web browsing, GoHip who hijacks our web browser and alters our eMail signatures . . . and many other hopeful and exploitive newcomers on the horizon.
When confronted with their actions, such companies invariably say "read the fine print, what we're doing is spelled out there and the user agreed." That's odd, if the users understood and agreed, I wonder why those users are so surprised and upset when someone tells them — in plain language — exactly what's going on?
Anonymous Surveillance for Profit
Online profiling & tracking "privacy statements", and backchannel "spyware" license agreements, invariably adopt identical cop-out terminology. They state that "no personally identifiable information" is being collected. It has been shown that in many instances this is an outright lie in itself, but even when, or if, it is true, I submit that these "identity stealing profilers" are nonetheless profiting from valuable information that has been stolen from us without our informed consent.
You can do something about it
Download Spybot (http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?page=mirrors) or Adaware (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/) and install these on your system!!
Ask Scot Pearson how much these suck!
If anyone needs any help with this let me know.