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Topic: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification  (Read 2522 times)

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Offline Nemesis

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Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« on: December 04, 2005, 09:28:18 am »
Link to full article

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Marketing company 180solutions filed a lawsuit against desktop-security firm Zone Labs taking issue with a warning generated by the security firm's personal firewall software, which labels 180solutions advertising client as spyware.


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"ZoneAlarm assigns a high risk status and states as follows about Zango and 180sA: 'It is recommended that you delete this application immediately because it constitutes a privacy risk, and has no know usefulness," 180solutions said in the complaint.


Link to 180solutions viewpoint

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We recently filed a lawsuit against Zone Labs, makers of the “ZoneAlarm” software application, after it was brought to our attention by a potential business partner that ZoneAlarm was “warning” users that our programs exhibit “Dangerous Behavior” posing a “High Risk” to users. As the screenshot below demonstrates, ZoneAlarm was advising that our 180search Assistant “is trying to monitor your mouse movements and keyboard strokes”:


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t’s interesting to see how Zone Labs has changed their labeling (see screenshot below) since our lawsuit was filed. Apparently tracking web sites visited (think cookies) is as bad as tracking mouse movements.


If it tracks the websites that I go to and sends that information to anyone else (without my explicit and informed permission) then it seems to me that ZoneLabs is right this is spyware.

Another viewpoint link
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Offline Sirgod

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #1 on: December 04, 2005, 09:38:18 am »
I agree with you Nemesis, I love Zone alarm and have used it for years.

Stephen passing on this info to a few people on other sites.

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Offline Nemesis

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #2 on: December 04, 2005, 09:52:45 am »
Quote from: Stephen NCC -73070 on December 04, 2005, 09:38:18 am
I agree with you Nemesis, I love Zone alarm and have used it for years.

Stephen passing on this info to a few people on other sites.

I keep it as a reserve on one system in case I have router problems and have to hook the modem straight to the computer rather than to the router (with a hardware firewall).  It is also on my mothers system and I routinely suggest it to others needing a firewall as it has performed well for me.  It is listed in our freely available software thread.
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I believe truth and principle do matter. If you have to sacrifice them to get the results you want, then the results aren't worth it.
 FoaS_XC : "Take great pains to distinguish a criticism vs. an attack. A person reading a post should never be able to confuse the two."

Offline Sirgod

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #3 on: December 04, 2005, 10:04:08 am »
Yep, I do also, I recomended ZoneAlarm many times on other sites that I help out with. It's a good solid Firewall, that I strongly support.

stephen
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Offline Dash Jones

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #4 on: December 04, 2005, 10:23:31 am »
Hopefully someone counter sues 180solutions, or presents a case to make them pay repercussions for the installation of spyware...now that they've brought it to all of our attention.
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Offline kmelew

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #5 on: December 04, 2005, 12:23:09 pm »
Lord knows how many instances of 180Solutions crap I've found on my company's workstations--probably in the thousands and climbing. 

McAfee, Symantec, and Trend also identify 180Solutions software and its many variants as malware, not just ZoneLabs.  Maybe 180Solutions feels that ZoneLabs has the weakest legal department...?
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Offline Lepton

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #6 on: December 04, 2005, 12:58:52 pm »
Rather simple solution to this problem.  Change the classification name.  SpyWare to Unwanted Web-Activity Tracking Software or some such thing.  Doesn't mean that it can't still be suppressed by ZoneAlarm.  Are Web Parental Control software companies to be sued by Porno sites for excluding their content from minors?  I don't think so.  One can write software to do anything as long as it is consistent with existing law.  Block content, get content, create content, what-have-you.  They have no leg to stand on.
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Offline Dash Jones

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #7 on: December 04, 2005, 03:26:16 pm »
didn't you hear about the lawsuit recently that said restricting M rated game sales to minor was unlawful...and the lawsuit was successful?

(Personally I think it SHOULD BE illegal to sell M rated games to minors but know I'm a minority of that opinion on this board).
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"All hominins are hominids, but not all hominids are hominins."


"Is this a Christian perspective?

Now where in the Bible does it say if someone does something stupid you should shoot them in the face?"

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We have whale farms in Jersey.   They're called McDonald's.

There is no "I" in team. There are two "I"s in Vin Diesel. screw you, team.

Offline Nemesis

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #8 on: December 04, 2005, 03:58:40 pm »
Quote from: Dash Jones on December 04, 2005, 03:26:16 pm
didn't you hear about the lawsuit recently that said restricting M rated game sales to minor was unlawful...and the lawsuit was successful?

(Personally I think it SHOULD BE illegal to sell M rated games to minors but know I'm a minority of that opinion on this board).

Since software typically comes with a license (contract) that you must agree to to be allowed to use the software and minors cannot sign a binding contract then I don't think minors should be allowed to purchase software.  Pass that into law and lets see how long until games are published without a EULA.   

:popcorn:
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I believe truth and principle do matter. If you have to sacrifice them to get the results you want, then the results aren't worth it.
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Offline Javora

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #9 on: December 04, 2005, 05:34:23 pm »
Quote from: kmelew on December 04, 2005, 12:23:09 pm
Lord knows how many instances of 180Solutions crap I've found on my company's workstations--probably in the thousands and climbing. 

McAfee, Symantec, and Trend also identify 180Solutions software and its many variants as malware, not just ZoneLabs.  Maybe 180Solutions feels that ZoneLabs has the weakest legal department...?

I think you are on to something Kmelew.  If 180solutions can win a judgement against ZoneLabs then it would be much easer to file and win another lawsuit against the likes of McAfee or Symantec.  Sad to see something like this happen whats the old saying, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck...   ::)
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Offline Sarek

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Re: Zone Labs sued over spyware classification
« Reply #10 on: December 05, 2005, 02:56:18 pm »
An interesting take on why they are going after Zone Labs and not the others:

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It's a sad fact that, as the big guys like Symantec and Microsoft have moved into the anti-spyware game, the trend is to be much more euphemistic about what you label as spyware, particularly when the spyware vendor claims to have gotten the user's consent to the installation through a EULA. While "potentially unwanted software" like 180's apps will still be tagged by the anti-spyware scan, the default setting now will often not be to remove it. Increasingly, anti-spyware vendors simply aren't calling a spade a spade, and that of course is a trend the adware crowd like 180Solutions wants to encourage.

http://www.gripe2ed.com/scoop/story/2005/12/5/82555/7508
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