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A Future Without Adware
A FUTURE BETTER WITHOUT AD ADWARE?
Jeanson James Ancheta made a good living from using adware to turn compromised computers into cash. The 20-year old Californian rigged together software to automate attacks on computers, infecting nearly 400,000 systems and allowing him to manage the machines remotely. Rather than using the resultant army of "zombie" systems to assault an unsuspecting Web site, Ancheta put the machines to work by installing popular adware—software that serves up browser-based ads that are unrelated to the site being surfed. By sidesteping systems that require a user's permission to install a file, Ancheta created a large affiliate network of adware-infected machines, getting paid by the companies for each machine on which the software was installed. In about six months, Ancheta made nearly $60,000, part of which he used to buy a BMW. Lucrative? Yes, but also unlawful. Law enforcement and consumer advocates have gotten wise to such schemes. Authorities arrested Ancheta he previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and to violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986. The Federal Trade Commission is investigating complaints against companies associated with adware, including 180solutions and Advertising.com, a subsidiary of Time Warner's AOL. Harsh measures, but the remains. The lion's share of adware has been installed on machines without a user's permission. A survey conducted recently by PC Pitstop found that between 70 and 90 percent of adware-infected users were unaware
of the software running on their PCs. Adware is lucrative for both advertisers and adware companies. Even the legal actions launched against them are not enough to deter them as the money is just too easy and too good. You can protect yourself in several ways. Personal firewalls can detect when unknown applications, including adware, attempt to install or contact the Internet. Unsafe sites can be uncovered via services that rate the Internet, such as SiteAdvisor. And although PC Magazine tests have found all antispyware programs to be less than perfect, software such as Webroot's Spy Sweeper, and PC Tools' Doctor can warn when certain types of programs are downloaded. About 62 percent of households have some form of the adware software installed, to AOL and the National Cyber Security Alliance. Meanwhile, consumer advocates are starting to fight back. They aim to take money out of the system by disgracing advertisers. Last month, the Center for Democracy and Technology shed light on the companies that used malicious software. Firms such as 180solutions. PeoplePC, NetZero, and Netflix showed up on the list, although the latter claimed that its appearance was an peculiarity and not company policy. In addition to the common defenses against attacks, you can contact the advertiser directly. If that doesn't work, report them to the FTC. (You can fill out an online compliant form at www.ftc.gov.) Enough consumer complaints may get adware advertisers to reconsider their behaviores.
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