Spyware Wars Rage in Cyberspace, Lawyers’ Letters
Antispyware companies are on the defensive, with the market struggling the past 2 weeks to draw the lines of legitimacy, as legislators have. A company widely branded as distributing spyware sent out legal demand letters objecting to the characterization. Microsoft -- which only days earlier had made a splash by starting to hand out antispyware software free -- apologized and paid a settlement to a Dutch firm it had tagged as a spyware provider. Reputable research firms have in some cases been lumped in with PC hijackers. Meanwhile, competing spyware bills simmer in Congress (WID Feb 16 p3).
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
A lawyer for iDownload.com sent letters at least to CastleCops and the SpyWarrior Blog, accusing them of “falsely disparaging iDownload’s product, iSearch,” as spyware. “iSearch does not qualify as Spyware,” said attorney Mark Hopkins’ letters, posted by recipients last week. “iSearch is a toolbar that in no way attempts to remain hidden or evade detection… iSearch does not gather any personally identifiable information about end users, does not collect data about the user’s web usage, does not collect any information entered into web forms, does not share information with third parties, does not send or cause to be sent unsolicited e-mail, and does not install items such as dialers on the end user’s computer.” It cautioned that unless the recipients stopped referring to iSearch as “spyware,” “foistware” or “malware,” “we will take all necessary action against your company to protect iDownload from your continuing [tortious] conduct.”
ComputerCops denied disparaging iDownload. Spyware “is actually capable of many definitions,” said the response last week by its attorney, Benjamin Rice. “Nevertheless, it appears that software disseminated by iDownload/iSearch would likely be regulated as illegal in California under… the Consumer Protection Against Spyware Act… Symantec, Lavasoft, Computer Associates, Spyware Warrior, Spyware Blaster and Doxdesk, to name a few,” call iSearch spyware. Rice’s letter refers to an ABC News commentary by Michael Malone in which he said users unknowingly download iSearch, which hijacks their Web start pages, offers ads from major brokerages and a national business news weekly and is extremely difficult to remove without buying a product for that purpose.
The reply offers “to allow iDownload a public forum on the CastleCops.com website in which to respond to the questions raised.” But it also promises “all legal measures necessary to protect” ComputerCops’ rights if iDownload doesn’t reply by March 15. SpyWarrior Blog, in its response to iDownload, denied making the kind of statements it was accused of and referred iDownload to the Cal.’s anti-SLAPP statute, short for strategic lawsuit against public participation.
The dispute created a stir online, despite little attention in mainstream media. A protest on PetitionOnline.com against iDownload’s actions had attracted 146 signatures by Mon. afternoon. “Security forum operators are being targeted first, with presumably smaller security vendors (pay, shareware or freeware) on the radar,” said a posting on Blogcritics.org. “I doubt that iDownload would want to take on the deep pockets such as MSFT, but it’s a rather scary broadside in that there are a lot of good folks who volunteer at various venues to help people get control of their computers back who might be intimidated by these tactics.”
Related controversies have swirled all over in recent days. Microsoft apologized to Startpagina.nl and paid the Dutch portal an undisclosed sum last week because its new AntiSpyware software incorrectly flagged it as a browser hijacker, according to published reports. Computer Assoc. and Lavasoft, maker of the Ad-Aware antispyware program, came under fire for removing the controversial WhenU adware from their spyware database when it protested, SecurityPipeline.com reported. And the tracking software of comScore Internet research is being removed by antispyware programs from PCs of the firm’s panel members, ClickZ news reported. It said Competitor Nielsen/NetRatings’ software was identified as a spyware threat by Symantec’s website and Ad-Aware. - Louis Trager