Spyware and adware, defined
p2pnet.net News:- An alliance of technology and consumer groups calling itself the Anti-Spyware Coalition today released a uniform definition of “spyware and other potentially unwanted technologies,” hoping it’ll prove a, “useful first step in helping consumers, industry, and law-makers address the problem of spyware”.
Now the coalition is asking the public for help in refining the draft definitions to meet the needs of the entire online community.
CIPPIC, the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic, is so far the only Canadian member.
“This is an important step in protecting consumer confidence in e-commerce,” says David Fewer, CIPPIC staff counsel.
“Canada has implemented a national innovation strategy to capitalize on the promise of Internet technologies. No current issue presents a greater challenge to that strategy than spyware. CIPPIC hopes that the ASC will help consumers, industry, and governments understand the threat spyware poses to consumer trust and confidence in the Internet.”
The ASC has released a glossary of terms for other potentially unwanted technologies, a consumer tip-sheet and a draft dispute resolution structure to mediate disputes between anti-spyware software vendors and companies whose applications have been tagged as “spyware”.
Spyware and other “potentially unwanted technologies” are defined as anything that impairs users’ control over material changes that affect their, “experience, privacy, or system security; use of their system resources, including what programs are installed on their computers; or collection, use, and distribution of their personal or otherwise sensitive information”.
The ASC has also written a glossary of terms such as “adware,” “port scanner,” “screen scraper” and other items sometimes associated with unwanted programs, as well as a list of tips intended to help computer users both avoid downloading unwanted programs and defend themselves against malicious spyware already on their computers, is available at the ASC’s web site.
Something you think we should know? tips[at]p2pnet.net
July 12th, 2005 at 11:12 pm
make sure they put gator (oops, i mean claria) on the dangerous list.
don’t let m$ wriggle through as “safe” after they buy gator (i mean claria).
July 12th, 2005 at 11:14 pm
“Spyware and other potentially unwanted technologies” arw defined as anything that, “impair users’ control over material changes that affect their user experience, privacy, or system security; use of their system resources, including what programs are installed on their computers; or collection, use, and distribution of their personal or otherwise sensitive information.”
So DRM is spyware then? Sounds fine to me, now lets outlaw all spyware on an international level and arrest the people who developed DRM.
Alexander Hanff
July 13th, 2005 at 1:52 am
It does me good to see that others are concerned with the effects of spyware, adware, and other malware. There can be no security with microsucks buying into nearly everything they can get their hands on. For myself I gave up some time ago on the idea that windoze will ever be secure. There is simply too much money passing hands for that to happen.
I finally threw up my hands and went to linux. It always does me good to see some hidden toolbar that failed to install because I am not running IE browser. Instead I see that 404 install error and it helps me to smile when I do see it. Funny thing I have noticed though, if you are not willing to allow this sort of spyware to install, many sites don’t want you to see the webpage. That works for me! What I am sure of is that 98% or better of the spyware doesn’t transfer to linux, nor do most of the trojans, virii, and other goodies. As you can tell from the security side, I am a happy camper.
Linux has also helped me to identify some backups I had that were infected with trojans. In linux the disc won’t load and afterward I must reboot to reactivate the browser. Again, thank you linux for making my life a good bit easier in the computing world and a good bit more secure.
Bill and the Boyz have certainly lost another customer to open source.
July 13th, 2005 at 1:00 pm
It seems to me that cookies provide the major residence for spyware. It goes without saying that cookies were the brain-babies of Billy Gates and gang. I have yet to hear of or read about a valid reason for allowing Internet companies to install cookies in the privacy of one’s computer. From the very inception of the cookie-monster, there could have been only one motive — to spy on the PC user.
If I knew enough about programming, I would devise an operating system that not only precluded cookies en masse, but that would require any given web site to agree to MY TERMS before I would agree to venture into their domain.
Consider: You are surfing; there is a web site that would love to have your business (wouldn’t they ALL???); before you would agree to patronize the site or even consider cyber-window-shopping there, it would have to agree to a set of Terms and Conditions which would have the force and effect of a legally binding contract. Ex: If Amazon would like to have my business, it would have to agree to MY TERMS and CONDITIONS (which would totally prohibit the use of cookie implants!, among other things.)
It seems to me that as consumers, we are getting the shaft under the current circumstances, and that the web sites are not necessarily doing us a favor, we are doing them the favor by patronizing them.
I really wish I knew how to program an operating system…