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AOL 9.0 Called Badware
Posted by
CmdrTaco
on Mon Aug 28, 2006 01:00 PM
from the been-called-worse dept.
from the been-called-worse dept.
An anonymous reader writes "The bad news at AOL keeps coming. First they get in trouble for releasing search data on more than half a million customers, then it gives away security software with a nasty EULA, now its free client software is accused of acting like badware according to Stopbadware.org, the Google-funded rating group."
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Execs at AOL Approved Release of Private Data? 156 comments
reporter writes "The New York Times has published a report providing further details about the release of private AOL search queries to the public. According to the report: 'Dr. Jensen, who said he had worked closely with Mr. Chowdhury on projects for AOL's search team, also said he had been told that the posting of the data had been approved by all appropriate executives at AOL, including Ms. [Maureen] Govern.' The report also identifies the other two people whom AOL management fired: they are Abdur Chowdhury and his immediate supervisor. Chowdhury is the employee who did the actual public distribution of the private search queries. He, apparently, has retained a lawyer."
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LOL (Score:5, Informative)
Re:LOL (Score:5, Insightful)
Lets face it though, hasn't AOL been "badware" since like 1991?
Parent
Badware? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Badware? (Score:5, Interesting)
Parent
Re:Badware? (Score:5, Interesting)
I immediately thought that "badware" must be poorly designed, written, or implimented software. AOL would definitely be in this category, as well as the spawn-of-Satan Microsoft products.
But since these words are synonomous I am coining a new word for software that isn't downright nasty like malware is, but just fails to reach the mark it was intended to. I call it "krapware." Those more vulgar of mind could call it "shitware" but that might be difficult to use in all circumstances.
Parent
Re:Maybe Joe Schmoe shouldn't be using a computer. (Score:5, Insightful)
Let's talk about Joe Schmoe for a second here. Joe Schmoe is probably a decent guy, and not necessarily dumb. It's just that he has a job, bills to pay, hobbies, and with any luck, a wife/girlfriend, and maybe kids. He thinks of his computer as he thinks of his washing machine. He buys it at a big box store, spends an hour or so setting it up, and then he uses it as a tool. When it breaks, he calls Geek Squad or the smart nerdy kid down the street, just like if the washing machine breaks, he calls the repair guy from Sears.
He doesn't look at a PC as a car, he thinks of it as a washing machine. We need to educate him about how to use it safely (SP2, patches, and AV for starters), and acting all high-and-mighty about it gets you nowhere.
Parent
Re:Maybe Joe Schmoe shouldn't be using a computer. (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
Re:Maybe Joe Schmoe shouldn't be using a computer. (Score:5, Interesting)
I put my toaster on the counter, stick the pop tarts in, and push the button. They get done in a minute, and I eat them.
The problem with computers is that if you use the washer incorrectly (or set it up incorrectly), it floods. You notice the problem right away. Most users don't realize they're botted until 2-3 months later (when the adware or spyware gets really, really bad).
The best way to do this is to offer computer classes with incentives, and to make home installion a part of computer sales. Failing that, Dells should all come with the firewall on, and AV and anti-spyware installed and running with a 6 month subscription, as well as a note (in dead tree form) reminding the user that he needs to update and renew the stuff in 6 months.
Parent
Re:I believe you're quite mistaken, sir. (Score:5, Insightful)
A more cynical person, someone experienced with both politics and the internet, might think that messages like this, posted with such similar wording, with such a similar idea being conveyed, could be 'testing the waters,' to see how the techies might respond to such a proposal.
A more cynical person might think that some senator or congressman, perhaps something involving Ted Stevens, is feeling out the idea of floating a bill, maybe something called "The Internet Security Act," or "The National Data Protection Act," or even the "Save the Children from Internet Pedophiles Act," where compulsory licensing is hidden away within.
A more cynical person would probably realize that all those license fees would simply disappear into heavily pork-filled projects, the main beneficiaries of which would be gigantic corporations, probably technology based, but equally likely to be ConAgra, Exxon, United Defense, or Halliburton. Even a simpleton would know the license fees do nothing to benefit them.
A cynical person might already know that as soon as a license becomes madatory, a huge revenue stream is created by fining those individuals who are unlicensed. Just like parking tickets, tax penalties, and code violations, this money will go to supporting even more regulations.
A cynical person would suspect that an unlicensed computer would become basis for sneak-and-peeks, no-knock-raids, and unwarrented wiretapping. A cynical person knows that countries like Cuba, China, Iran, and Saudi Arabia already have laws regarding licensing of internet access. Sure has helped them, hasn't it?
A more cynical person might think that kind of thing, indeed.
*Astroturfing: In American politics and advertising, the term astroturfing describes formal public relations projects which deliberately seek to engineer the impression of spontaneous, grassroots behavior. The goal is the appearance of independent public reaction to a politician, political group, product, service, event, or similar entities by centrally orchestrating the behavior of many diverse and geographically distributed individuals.
Parent
Not really (Score:5, Insightful)
"Badware", while maybe it does sound like a kindergarten word, tends to convey the broader meaning and not get bogged in such lexical arguments. It doesn't imply malicious _intent_ or have to fit any definition of spying or whatever else these fucktards argue in court. It's just "bad".
And, frankly, as an end-user I don't care why or with what intent it was written like that. E.g., if a toolbar or anti-virus is a nightmare to uninstall and leaves components running after I uninstalled it, it's "bad". I don't care if it's like that by malice or if Hanlon's Razor applies. ("Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.") It's just "bad" and they better clean up their act.
To give a personal example, I had an experience like that with one of those MacAffee all-in-one security packages. An older version, but annoying anyway. Among the many problems it had, picture this: so when installing I installed it on D:, to free space on C:. But the first update installed itself in the default directory in C: anyway. But here's the stupid part: it also let the original version from D: running at the same time, so I had two anti-viruses running at the same time, slowing my machine to a crawl. So I uninstall it. Ok, it uninstalled the newly installed one from C:, but left the old one still installed and still running. Only this time without an uninstall, so I had to manually edit the registry and remove files to get rid of it.
I'm sure that Hanlon's Razor fully applies there. It was no malice, there was no intention to spy, it's just written by the cheapest incompetent monkeys. But it's "bad" anyway. So "Badware" seems to fit that just nicely.
Parent
I love it! (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
AOL was good before....? (Score:4, Insightful)
Back in 95? Yes, they were good (Score:5, Interesting)
Back in 95, I had Prodigy. It was terrible. My username and email were something like "85XZW9@prodigy.net" or some such un-memorable non-sense. I couldn't tell people my e-mail address because I couldn't even remember it myself. IIRC, there was no "screenname", just the account name. Their client software was very much a DOS type app (even when run under Win3.1) that could not be minimized and filled the whole screen with a single task. And they did not have IM or anything like it.
So one-day I tried AOL 2.something. It had a windows interface, so I could have multiple tasks open (i.e. one with the news, another with the weather, and another with a browser). I had a real username that was memorable and that approximated my own (along with a few other screennames for chat). And they had IM (no buddy list yet, that would be another year or two away), so I could send private messages in chat. And there was more content than prodigy. The web based advertising and spamming business were still immature, so they were not as sophisticated or motivated to spy on their customers as they are now.
I also tried a few more services back then, MSN, still independantly run compuServe, something called WOW, etc. None of them were as good as AOL in 1995. Remember that pure ISP-only "web" was still young, web content was sparse, and search technology was immature, so it was hard to locate. Once cable-modem came to town in 1999, I keep AOL around for a few years for the email address. But I shut that down back in 2002.
In their time AOL was the best on-line + internet service around. Basic internet was just not developed enough and the other services just didn't match up.
Parent
Not uninstalling is a huge pet peeve of mine (Score:5, Insightful)
The suite is also criticized for engaging in "deceptive installation" and faulted because some components fail to uninstall.
This is just ridiculous. Why are there so many programs that refuse to uninstall or leave pieces of themselves lying around? How hard can it be for the "uninstall" function to actually work? Worse, do I really need several dialog boxes to get rid of something? I can always install it again. It's not like I'm wiping my hard drive.
Re:Not uninstalling is a huge pet peeve of mine (Score:5, Insightful)
Two processes are left running and sucking up memory. The programmer who is charge of the unistall routine should be tarred and feathered and then forbidden from ever working in the field again. Beyond the obvious issue think about this. Aol 9.0.3343 is updated to 9.0.4000 because of a massive security flaw in AOLServiceHost.exe. You uninstalled AOL before the update came out and yet there sits part of the old version of AOL running as part of your OS just inviting trouble.
Parent
This is news? (Score:5, Insightful)
This is news? Everyone I know has been saying that for *years* about AOL and their software. It tries to take over your system, has odd compatability problems, is extremely difficult to remove, and bombards you with ads. And that's when you *pay* for it!
I wonder what the "Google Toolbar" rates... (Score:5, Insightful)
Jessica Simpson (Score:4, Funny)
wtheck (Score:4, Funny)
Re:badware? (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
Re:badware? (Score:5, Insightful)
Parent
Re:badware? (Score:5, Informative)
Installs additional software without disclosure (Deceptive installation)
Forces users to take an action (Interferes with computer use)
Adds AOL toolbar in Internet Explorer (Makes changes to other software without disclosure)
Adds additional icons to default Internet Explorer toolbar (Makes changes to other software without disclosure)
Adds to "Favorites" in Internet Explorer (Modifies other software without disclosure)
Adds AOL Deskbar to the user's taskbar (Modifies other software without disclosure)
Updates software automatically (Deceptive installation)
Fails to uninstall software completely (Unacceptable unistallation)
Parent
Re:badware? (Score:5, Funny)
http://websiteperson.com/advocate/uninstallaol90.h tm [websiteperson.com]
1. Go to the control panel, Add/Remove Software, and choose AOL. I think it asks you to restart after this.
All done, right? Not yet!
2. Follow the same steps to remove "Real Player," assuming you don't want it! (Spyware, intrusive.)
3. Follow the same steps to remove "AOL Coach." Apparently uninstalling AOL doen't uninstall this, whatever it is.
4. Follow the same steps to remove "AOL Desk Bar." Hmmm... Maybe this was the icon in the task bar?
5. Follow the same steps to remove "AOL Spyware Protection."
6. Follow the same steps to remove "AOL Toolbar."
7. Follow the same steps to remove "AOL You've Got Pictures Screensaver."
I think we're almost done!
8. Follow the same steps to remove "Pure Networks Port Magic." (What the heck is THAT?)
9. Follow the same steps to remove "Viewpoint Experience Technology."
Not done yet...
Parent
It's Still Badware (Score:5, Informative)
It's obviously made for newbies who need lots of handholding, and it's good that they're bundling free antivirus with AOL 9.0 because that demographic really needs it. If you want to try out free AOL 9.0 over broadband, do yourself a favor and install it in a VM. MS Virtual PC and VMWare Player are both free (beer). QEMU is Free, but you need the KQEMU module to get decent speed, and it's free (beer).
Parent
Re:Erm (Score:5, Interesting)
Because Google has a real interest in taking down AOL considering that they paid a billion [businessweek.com] just to do business with them.
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