Adware

So serious in fact that I'm going to be choosing my words very carefully... this subject has all the potential of placing a distinct gleam in the eyes of the legal profession.

Let me begin with a short explanation of what it's about.

There is a type of freeware programs to which I have referred quite frequently called Adware. I make no claim to having coined this name... lets just call it a generic identification for programs / software where the use is free but advertising banners are displayed while the program is running. Many authors have adopted this approach rather than release their product as shareware because they derive some income from the advertising.

Authors incorporate additional software code into their program for the purpose of delivering these ads. and this is obtained from a company specialising in this service by "signing up" with them. There are a number of such companies and adware has been around for a while now.

What has started a great deal of debate is that it is being said that this software code is not merely downloading advertising banners but doing other things as well... things that raise privacy concerns which users should be aware of.

With some sense of relief I'm very happy at this point to defer to someone I regard as a real expert in this field Steve Gibson of ShieldsUP! fame. I've mentioned his name in a couple of articles... the most recent being : Salt Water.

Steve has created a new page on his website specific to this very matter. I found it to be extremely informative and he struck me as has having gone to great lengths to provide a very balanced explanation. He has also included a link on the page to a small utility program which will allow you to check your own system for the presence of the software in question.

As he states, his purpose in providing this is to place the user in the position of being aware of it's existence and then making an informed decision on whether to remove it or not.

OptOut

I downloaded the utility, ran it, and discovered what I expected to find... yes, me too. I wasn't surprised because I use one adware program almost every day.

Will I delete the software and lose the use of the program? I'm thinking about it, but at least I'm better informed now.

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