Adware

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is  about adware. For Lavasoft's Ad-Aware ad/malware removal utility, see Ad-Aware.

Adware or  advertising-supported software is  any software package which automatically plays, displays, or  downloads advertising material to a computer after the software is  installed on it  or while the application is  being used.

Contents 1 Application 2 Controversy 3 Well-known adware programs 4 Prevention 5 See also 6 External links

[edit] Application

Adware is  software integrated into or  bundled with a program. it  is usually seen by the programmer as a way to recover programming development costs, and  in some cases it  may allow the program to be provided to the user free of charge or  at a reduced price. The advertising income may allow or  motivate the programmer to continue to write, maintain and  upgrade the software product.

Some adware is  also shareware, and  so the word may be used as term of distinction to differentiate between types of shareware software. What differentiates adware from other shareware is  that it  is primarily advertising-supported. Users may also be given the option to pay for a "registered" or  "licensed" copy to do away with the advertisements.

[edit] Controversy

There are  concerns about adware because it  often takes the form of spyware, in which information about the user's activity is  tracked, reported, and  often re-sold, often without the knowledge or  consent of the user. Of even greater concern is  malware, which may interfere with the function of other software applications, in order to force users to visit a particular web site.

It is  not uncommon for people to confuse "adware" with "spyware" and  "malware", especially since these concepts overlap. For example, if one user installs "adware" on a computer, and  consents to a tracking feature, the "adware" becomes "spyware" when another user visits that computer, and  interacts with and  is tracked by the "adware" without their consent.

Spyware has prompted an  outcry from computer security and  privacy advocates, including the Electronic Privacy Information Center [1]. Often, spyware applications send the user's browsing habits to an  ad-serving company, which then targets adverts at the user based on their interests. Kazaa and  eXeem are  popular file-sharing programs that deliver target ads to their users.

Adware programs other than spyware do not invisibly collect and  upload this activity record or  personal information when the user of the computer has not expected or  approved of the transfer, but some vendors of adware maintain that their application which does this is  not also spyware, due to disclosure of program activities: for example, a product vendor may indicate that since somewhere in the product's Terms of Use there is  a clause that third-party software will be included that may collect and  may report on computer use, that this Terms of Use disclosure means the product is  just adware.

A number of software applications are  available to help computer users search for and  modify adware programs to block the presentation of advertisements and  to remove spyware modules. To avoid a backlash, as with the advertising industry in general, creators of adware must balance their attempts to generate revenue with users' desire to be left alone.

[edit] Well-known adware programs

• 123 Messenger
• 180 Solutions
  • 180SearchAssistant
  • Zango
• Bonzi Buddy
• BlockChecker
• ClipGenie
• Comet Cursor
• Cydoor
• Direct Revenue
  • Aurora
• Ebates MoneyMaker
• ErrorSafe
• Gator
• Hotbar
• Opera prior to 20 September 2005
• PornDigger!
• Smiley Central
• StumbleUpon
• WeatherBug
• WhenU
• WinFixer

The Eudora e-mail client is  a popular example of an  adware "mode" in a program. After a trial period during which all program features are  available, the user is  offered a choice: a free (but feature-limited) mode, an  ad-supported mode with all the features enabled, or  a paid mode that enables all features and  turns off the ads. If the user choose the ad-supported mode, Eudora becomes adware, although according to Qualcomm the program does not collect any information about user activity.

[edit] Prevention

Programs have  been developed in order to detect, quarantine, and  remove adware as well as spyware. Among the more  prominent applications are:

• Ad-Aware by Lavasoft
• CounterSpy by Sunbelt Software
• Spybot Search & Destroy by Patrick Kolla
• SpySubtract by Intermute
• SpySweeper by Webroot
• Spyware Doctor by PCTools
• XoftSpy at [[2]]

These programs are  designed specifically for antispyware detection, and  as such, will not work on viruses.

Best practices for general security on the Internet, especially when browsing the World Wide Web (where a large portion of adware is  installed from via security holes and  social engineering), include the following:

• Keeping up-to-date with security patches and  operating system updates from Windows Update
• Using an  alternative Web browser (e.g. Mozilla Firefox, Netscape, Opera, et cetera)
• Installing ad-blocking software (Trend Micro Internet Security and  Norton Internet Security both support this feature; advanced users can use the MVPS HOSTS file. For users of Firefox, there is  the Adblock extension, which can prevent harmful adds.

[edit] See also

• Spyware
• Malware
• Computer insecurity
• Shareware
• Antivirus software

[edit] External links

• Adware and  Spyware at the Open Directory Project
• Anti-Spyware Coalition

Forms of software distribution
Adware • Beerware • Careware • Crippleware • Demoware • Donationware • Donateware • Freely redistributable software • Free software • Freeware • Greenware  • Nagware • Open source • Otherware • Postcardware • Proprietary software • Ransomware • Registerware • Shareware