jimnms
08-10-2004, 11:26 AM
It's bad enough that spyware and adware are disabling millions of home computers. Now come fake programs that claim to remove these pests for a fee, but don't.
"It has been a big problem this year," says Ari Schwartz of the Center for Democracy and Technology, which has been lobbying Congress and the Federal Trade Commission for action.
Heavily touted on most search engines, these rogue programs lure users with "free" scans. Want to remove the "spyware"? Buy the full version for $29.95. A handful of these programs even install their own favored brands of adware and spyware.
The problem has been around for a while, but in recent months, has grown so bad that it has become far easier to fall for bogus products than to find the real thing, according to Eric L. Howes, a university of Illinois graduate student who runs the definitive Web site to evaluate bogus spyware eliminators (www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm (http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm)). His site lists more than 75 such programs, with new ones every day. There are even phony "review" sites that rate bogus programs, and either ignore or downgrade the legitimate ones.
Full Story (http://www.newsday.com/business/nyc-biz-spy0809,0,5985461.story?coll=ny-business-headlines)
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Learn from the mistakes of others, you won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.
"It has been a big problem this year," says Ari Schwartz of the Center for Democracy and Technology, which has been lobbying Congress and the Federal Trade Commission for action.
Heavily touted on most search engines, these rogue programs lure users with "free" scans. Want to remove the "spyware"? Buy the full version for $29.95. A handful of these programs even install their own favored brands of adware and spyware.
The problem has been around for a while, but in recent months, has grown so bad that it has become far easier to fall for bogus products than to find the real thing, according to Eric L. Howes, a university of Illinois graduate student who runs the definitive Web site to evaluate bogus spyware eliminators (www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm (http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm)). His site lists more than 75 such programs, with new ones every day. There are even phony "review" sites that rate bogus programs, and either ignore or downgrade the legitimate ones.
Full Story (http://www.newsday.com/business/nyc-biz-spy0809,0,5985461.story?coll=ny-business-headlines)
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Learn from the mistakes of others, you won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.