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Adware and Under-Wear - The Definitive Guide
Not Quite, but Still Questionable
Internet Filtering Programs
Plenty of programs out there purport to "keep your surfing safe" from pornography, objectionable content, and other material you may not want to view while you or your family or co-workers surf the Net. Bess, Cyberpatrol4, NetNanny, Cyber Sitter, Cybersnoop, Eye Guard, Surf Watch, and other programs fall into this category. While this is legitimate software lawfully installed by parents, schools, employers, and others, it is in essence client-side censorship. The folks at Cexx.org make the case:
"By blocking access to 'inappropriate' sites and keeping intricate logs of any 'offensive' sites you've tried to visit, these programs not only restrict your freedoms, but could also violate your privacy by telling your employer/co-workers/parents all the sites you've tried to access -- be they about breast cancer, certain religious, political or sexual orientations, drug/alcohol use, AIDS, sites for helping you find a new employer.... The privacy and job-security ramifications are far-reaching to say the least. Censorware is a tool-of-choice for overprotective parents and paranoid employers, and is typically fairly easy to disable despite password-protection and other schemes designed to deter cybersabotage."
The same page at Cexx tells how you can disable or get around most Internet filters. Be warned: some parents, teachers, and employers won't take kindly to your efforts to work around these programs.
Web Bugs
"Web bugs" are tiny, transparent .GIF images that are loaded onto your browser when you visit their sites. If cookies are tracked, or if a procedure called "fake dating" is used, your download of the .GIF can be used to track and record your visit.
Ultraseek
Visitors to Ultraseek's Website might be rattled when the site shows them the contents of their own hard drives and claims that they're vulnerable to hacking. If the surfer is suitable shaken up, he or she might buy the program this site is offering, the $100 Internet Eraser Pro, which the site claims will protect the surfer from unwanted intrusions.
It's bad enough that the program does no more than various free programs and code blocks do, but worse, the program tries to dupe the surfer by sending a harmless "file://c:/" command to your browser, showing you (but no one else) the contents of your computer in your browser display. Ultraseek hasn't found a vulnerability in your system and its program is dubious at best. A thoroughly underhanded marketing technique, and one not limited to Ultraseek.
A Cautionary Tale
Most Net marketers and business folks know the sad, sordid tale of Website Results, an Internet marketing firm that achieved short-lived success by lying to and spying on their customers. They told their clients that they were helping them achieve the highest possible ratings on search engines such as Google and AltaVista, and when their clients checked, lo and behold, they were ranked very highly. Huzzah! Unfortunately, it turned out that the clients (including Orvis, WebMB, eBay, and ESPN) were being duped by a combination of fraudulent reporting techniques and spyware (a specially written program dramatically dubbed "The Zebra Project").
In May 2001 three of the top perpetrators were fired and Website Results, acquired by 24/7 Media, began reinventing itself as a legitimate purveyor of providing search engine placement for online advertisers. The three fellows who were fired went on to found IntelliTech, and while there perpetrated an even more egregrious fraud on unsuspecting visitors to their client site Flowgo, as well as other affiliated sites. Their ad on Flowgo, a family Web portal, redirected visitors to IntelliTech's own "Kool Katalog" site. Once at KoolKatalog, users with older Java engines had a flaw in those engines exploited, which allowed up to 10 spyware files to be installed on their machines without their knowledge.
The spyware monitored what sites their victims were visiting, sent updates and other files to the infected computers, terminated firewall applications, and more. The site Online1Net.com also infected your machine. Trend Microsystems has released a free tool that automates the 49 steps necessary to purge infected machines. TrendMicro has dubbed the whole thing a virus, TROJ_SUA.A. More removal information is also avaiable.