Google's Anti-Spyware Project

peterfa writes "Sun and Google have teamed up and started a project called Stop Badware. This project aims to expose all the spyware and adware bundled in software and the companies that are responsible. While it's funded by Sun and Google, the research will be done by Oxford and Harvard."

Harvord!

While it's funded by Sun and Google, the research will be done by Oxford and Harvord."

Hay, I got my Computor Sciense degrie from Harvord Web Univercity! I'm an aluminumni! I lerned abowt it frum adware witch was monitering my /. typiing skils and sugestid I enrol rite away (don't bothur enterring you're credit card, we alreddy know it, jist hit buton and you start on yor way too hire educatoin!!!1) (My sistor is going to Oxfurd!)

I try anty spywear softwear but, itt keeps flasshing lotsa things on teh screen with WQRNINGs and stuff, so I geussed it didn'tinstall rite so I uninstaled them all. Ihop this works betters!

Ad-Aware-Aware(TM) approved text

Mr. Grabpot Thundergust has 600,000$AM for you!

Google Toolbar?

I wonder if Google Toolbar will be included in this.

What is there to research?

We need spyware killers and better protection - not more academic research. They should fund some OS project to help users.

Re:What is there to research?

Actually the research should be done as it will help the developers of OSs and apps to understand how spyware gets on systems. If most spyware arrives because someone installed Bonzai Buddy then that is different than exploits being used to install without user consent. While they are both bad I think it is vital to OS developers to know why and how this stuff gets there.
-nB

Re:What is there to research?

Hmmm. Many Windows loopholes are well known - but the main reason for spyware gets installed are the users themselves. Either they don't fix loopholes (by running windows patches), use safe browsers or they simply can't resist the temptation to install any crap they find.

Sure - we can't blame it all on users and their badly managed/protected systems - but some safer computing with more brains could help ... a lot ...

Re:What is there to research?

What we need is a legal precedent set to establish that, yes, a computer belongs solely to the person who shelled out the cash for it. No, it does not belong, in whole, part, or by EULA, to any idiot who manages to package their badware with some stupid search toolbar, screensaver, or desktop theme.

Re:What is there to research?

Yeah, count me in as another person wondering why there was such a big rift:

Google gets Sun, Lenovo (IBM), WebWatch (Consumer Reports), the Berkman Center for Internet & Society and Oxford University together to form a group called "Stop Badware" that sends money to a bunch of students, who in turn setup a little website that "names and shames" spyware software. The website is to be visited by people that already understand what spyware is and how not to get it. Spyware makers to totally ignore the students strongly worded opinions.

Microsoft leads a group containing Lavasoft (Adaware), Trend Micro, Symantec, Grisoft (AVG), McAfee, Websense, Panda Software, Yahoo, AOL, Dell, HP, Aluria (Earthlink), the National Center for Victims of Crime, the National Cyber Security Alliance, the Samuelson Law Technology & Public Policy Clinic (UC Berkeley School of Law) along with another 2 dozen major security, general internet, public advocacy and legal organizations called the "Anti-Spyware Coalition". Microsoft directs this organization in a three pronged attack on spyware:

- Clearly defining what spyware is and what is does, in order to improve understanding among normal users, providing common standards for anti-spyware software, and helping to make spyware a concept that can be used effectively and accurately in legislation.

- Directly confronting spyware makers in the courts, hitting them where it hurts, their wallet. For example this week Microsoft is pulling in Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna to file a lawsuit against the makers of "Spyware Cleaner", a product that actually infects computers with its own spyware, and is advertised through misleading email and messenger spam. Microsoft has already had numerous court room victories against the spyware makers and spammers.

- Using the rigorous terminology defined in point 1, with the court precedent created in point 2, the ASC lobbies Congress to pass tough anti-spyware laws, closing the loopholes and grey areas that make spyware non-trivial to legally stop.

So to compare, one camp has declared war on spyware, and has assembled the best generals in the industry and the largest groups of regular troops, and launched a major assault on the spyware mainland, already capturing several cities. The other camp has gotten together at the local university to sit around writing beatnik poetry about how bad spyware is.

Re:What is there to research?

TFA is very light on details, so I went directly to the source and read the StopBadWare.org press release [stopbadware.org]

Here is how the program will work:

Internet users can visit StopBadware.org to check whether programs they want to download are infected with badware and alert others to programs they have encountered that include malicious software such as spyware, incessant pop-up ads or other obtrusive programs.

StopBadware.org will publish short user friendly reports on downloads they have identified as badware, as well as more detailed academic studies on the problem of badware.

StopBadware.org will publicize the names of companies that make up the most insidious purveyors of badware and shed light on how they make money through unethical marketing practices. For example, advertisements will spotlight the worst purveyors of badware.

StopBadware.org will seek the horror stories from Internet users who have been adversely affected by badware. It will publish these stories to raise awareness of badware's harmful affects.

To be fair to the beatniks, they have a different focus and the fact that they've got Consumer Reports on their side shows it. IMHO, Their goal is to review software & not to sue bad guys or write laws.

How?

The article is light on how the project actually works, do users have to install some sort of detecting tools which alerts them of badware upon download and/or prior to installation?

Is this going to be like the spamm blacklists which can be subjective?

Re:How?

Personally I'd be satisfied with some sort of a trusted archive that allows you to research different programs/sites/companies. There's a lot of info available on the web but most of it is buried in tech forums or as come ons for dubious spyware removal programs, both of which you're never really confident about the truth. That way it wouldn't be just a yay or nay that goes on under the covers, but a place where you could find out what a program's issues are, or the track record of a developer.

What about Stanford?

> While it's funded by Sun and Google, the research will be done by Oxford and Harvard.

Stanford and Berkeley snubbed by alumni, film at 11!

Include Ben Edelman in this!

His research in regards to this matter is invaluable, and it's arguable that he's the leading authority on who's bankrolling crapware.

[witty topic]

[assorted remarks regarding detection of Stop Badware by Microsoft AntiSpyware/Onecare and vice versa, and their views towards Claria/360/assorted other 'Badware' providers and packagers who are really legitimate buisnesses with legitimate buisness models who are given a bad name by their devilish affiliates who are still mysteriously taking paychecks from aforementioned companies]

I, for one

Am looking forward to a Google and Sun made anti spyware program.

Sun???

I can't see what sun can gain my pouring money into this research. It is obvious about the competitive edges Google and Lenova (left out of the summary) can get. But why is Sun in on this?

Excellent!

Not because google is handling funding, but that an organization that doesn't have a vested interest in such business persuits is doing the actual work.

PS: I'm waiting for Google to annouce its plan for world peace.

Re:Excellent!

Google's income comes from advertising, and these spywares are showing ads, hence competiting for eyeballs, I would say Google has a large interest in squashing these competitors.

Google profits from spyware

Google has a reason to keep spyware around. They make millions from selling ad space on their search results and affiliates TO the adware companies. Do a search for "smiles", "screensavers" or "Spyware removal" and you'll see lots of ads for adware/spyware!

Google should do less evil by not accepting ads from these companies.

How about...

How about also exposing the companies that pay for the information gathered by spyware/adware? In other words, the ones actually funding it...

/Didn't RTFA

Damage control

Is this a PR move designed to make Google look less evil, after the world reacted in disgust to their censorship in China?

4 Google stories in one day?

This must be a record! Come on - I know Slashdot has become synonymous with the Google Blog, but this is crazy!

Stop Badware, bad bad badware... go to your cage!

To some extent the Stop Badware project will repeat work done by some anti-spyware campaigners such as Suzi Turner and Eric Howes who maintain a list of fake products that users should be wary of.

Wow, this really reminds me of my last trip to the Dollar Store.

NewSpeak?

Project UngoodWare aims to give you a double plus good bellyfeel about your computer. The people of Harvard and Oxford will have a goodthink and make an effort to stop the many installcrimes done by the unpersons who make ungoodware.

Project Ungoodware: brought you you by the Minisry of Love.

Wrong format??

Would something like this work better as a wiki? Sort of open-ended peer-reviewed?

Maybe it might get cluttered with junk, too, though, hmm.

I wonder if a pseudo-moderated wiki capacity for a truly open editable document might work. Weighted by the user's real time previous moderations (+5 Neutral, -5 Troll, etc).

That leads me to the point, actually -- are there specifications for an open editable moderated document that falls towards neutrality in facts?

Google IS the problem

Notice how the site has a forum, on google groups. The ADS on those pages are for adware based spyware removers! Google makes millions if not billions from adware/spyware companies who advertise on google and google affiliates. Lots of standard searches like "screensavers" and "smilies" will bring up adware, and if you search for a spyware removal tool, you'll likely get some even worse spyware than you had before. If Google wanted to do good (and not be evil) they would BAN spyware, adware and badware from AdSense, and they'd filter them from the listings! Who's with me?

And the URL is...

Good news, but I would have been happier if the article or submitter also mentioned the actual URL of the site [stopbadware.org]...

Small Step...

echo "127.0.0.1 www.google-analytics.com" >> etc/hosts.

Missed the bota

This is a shining example of Google innovation. There's a crapload of anti "badware" software out there already, and there's quite a good free one which coincidentally is provided by Microsoft.

What's next ... a Google Messenger? Oops.

Spyware is easy money

I often get paid to provide tech support to friends and other people from my area (just a modest village) for a few bucks. Recently, our local ISP not only provided us with DSL, but also a special offer that includes a payment plan for a (cheap) Dell computer if you sign up for DSL for a year.

You would not believe the number of computers that went out of commission within the first month just from being overloaded with spyware/adware. I often feel the urge to tell them "Stop surfing pr0n sites. Stop clicking on everything in sight just because it tells you to click it."

But I don't. Because I know that as soon as I fix it, they'll just ask me to come over again within a few weeks. I seriously doubt they would listen anyway. As I said, easy money.

Why these schools?

Why Harvard and Oxford? Do these school have the computer science talent to really dive into this problem? Or is Google and SUN trying to look a little more fair by not always heading up the road to Stanford and giving their alma mater some kickbacks? I know that Harvard and Oxford have produced some of the greatest literary minds of the 20th century, but are they up to the challenge of figuring out how weatherBug got on my system?

do you think...

.. microsoft will show up on the list of companies installing spyware?

What is wrong with slashdot these days?

Fifty comments have been posted to this thread and not one mentions GNU/Linux, the most obvious answer to spyware.

I mean, for what perverted reason would one ever install Microsoft Windows?

Good idea but...

Wouldn't that lead them to being sued by companies saying "oh, our software isn't spyware, its useful!" and other rubbish? I recall reading about a few antispyware companies and/or researchers threatened with lawsuits (or even sued) because their research was "defaming" said company or "misleading" the public about their supposed "valuable" product. In this day and age, with the ridiculous litigious society we live in, how is this project going to fare? I hope they do succeed, however. I'm fed up with crapware.

This is a Trojan horse - No one will see it coming

It really should be obvious - but most of us are so used to Google by now that we might be too comfy.

Google has an enormous information gathering capability. Seen those Goooooooogle ADS everywhere? While it may not be spy-WARE per say... it certainly feeds you a cookie. Noticed how MANY of these Goooooogle ADS sites there are? Theyre just popping up everywhere arent they?! Yes they are - and you dont even give it a second thought while you throw yourself into the Google anti-spyware projects. Google dont want competitors. A Spyware program is a competitor of Google as it gathers information about the users surfing habits just like Google does - but in a much more intrusive way (well...at least if feels that way).

Are we getting the picture yet?

Right until...

... the advertizers start threatning to boycot them?

Google made a bundle last year, one wonders if they wouldn't like to continue to do that.

I get what they're doing

This past week I've been helping one of my friends remove spyware from his computer. All he did was hook up to a relative's cable to download a large update file, and in the space of a couple of hours, his unprotected PC got loaded down with several DOZEN virii including VX2, smartloadb, Virtumundo, etc.

Google believes click fraud to be the most significant threat to the internet. This makes sense because click fraud is what makes all the malware, adware and virii PROFITABLE. What Google and Sun are doing with stopbadware.org is their answer to that. And it's an answer that is needed badly.

Why? As a very recent veteran of attempting to remove malware, I can tell you that the good side of this war is terribly, horribly disorganized. Let me explain:

If you get a massive infection of various kinds of malware, or if you want to protect yourself against all this stuff, you have to:

1. Protect yourself with a firewall (software example: Zonealarm)
2. Run or have available an antitrojan application (example: Trojan Hunter)
3. Run an antivirus program (commercial examples: Norton or McAfee; freeware example: Grisoft AVG Free)
4. Run several antispyware programs (examples: Spybot, Lavasoft Adaware, Microsoft Antispyware)
5. Use something like merijn.org's HiJackThis to find out what your system is infected with that all of the above cannot detect
6. If you're infected with something difficult like VX2 that can't be detected by ANY of the above, you may also need to hunt down very specific helper scripts and applications to deal with it, or even worse figure out how to remove it manually (which is generally VERY technical and difficult).

So, you have firewall, antitrojan, antivirus, antispyware and detection all covered by entirely different industries, most of which don't have much overlap (antivirus programs still do little against antispyware, for example). In the antispyware category, none of the legit programs can detect everything, so you need to run several of them.

You also have the fact that most of these anti-malware companies are commercial; they need to make money doing what they do, because what they do is very difficult, very technical, and has to be done VERY FAST. You see freeware versions, probably because they can't stand to see people who can't afford all these applications get run into the ground by the malware industry.

It doesn't help at all that you've got hundreds - literally, hundreds - of malware installers masquerading as antispyware, antitrojan and antivirus programs. The antispyware industry has had no choice but to put up www.spywarrior.com just so people can sort out the few good ones from the many bad ones. That site is run by one of the legit companies. That company would obviously much rather have nonprofit, noncommercial oversight declaring who is legit and who isn't - it puts a commercial company in an uncomfortable ethical position to be declaring legitimacy of other companies in its industry. But I don't see that they had any choice; to not do it would be even worse.

It looks like that is what badware.org is intended to be, and what is so badly needed - a nonprofit organization that has no base or funding from within the antimalware industries, to oversee and report on those industries.

Do you know what the process for cleaning an infected computer is right now? You post HiJackThis logs to a variety of different forums (just google "HiJackThis Logfile" for a sample) and people voluntarily, out of the goodness of their hearts, help you with incredibly technical removal procedures (google "VX2 removal" to see what I mean). If you want to look up these removal procedures yourself, you google around on various antispyware and antivirus web sites with various descriptions (often vague or assuming you have their commercial product). It's horribly disorganized, with different antivirus companies calling each virus by a different name. A good example: try and find out how to tell the difference between a Lo

"informal efforts"

The very last sentance of TFA says:

There are also many informal efforts that produce utility programs to remove particular sorts of spyware and adware.

Informal?

Because the effort isn't backed by a multi-national company, it is informal?

I wouldn't classify [Your Favorite Ad/Spyware Program Here] as an informal effort. Programs like Spy-Bot and Ad-Aware are most definitely not informal. MS's spyware remover, various virus scanners, etc... most definitely not informal efforts.

Maybe the reporter was talking about those various small programs written to specifically root out certain infestations?

Could be Useful

I'm not sure if anything like this exists already, but, this could be quite useful in some circumstances.

A central source of information on downloadable programs that tells you wether or not a downloadable program is bundled with known spyware. Now, create a firefox extension that checks when you go to download a file, if that filename (and perhaps source domain) and looks it up on the central source and then warns the user that th efile is known to contain spyware. This way, you can be more pro-active in spyware prevention than the usual re-active.

Like i said, this probably exists in some form out there now.

Once you go Mac, you never go back!!!

I've been running OSX now for about 3 years. I have *NO* antivirus software. I have *NO* antispware. The really telling thing is that I also have *NO* problems! The best thing about OSX is that I just don't need any of this stuff. At this point in the game, it is completely irrelevant to me.

For all you Microsoft users who are trapped in your ActiveX hell, I feel for you. I have only one thing to say, "Free your OS and your @ss will follow!"

2 cents,

Queen B

Badware?

I thought spyware + adware would be more like "sadware".

MIT's Startup Advisor?

Perhaps someone at Google saw MIT's SiteAdvisor http://developers.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/0 1/15/0141236&from=rss [slashdot.org] with Google integration and like me thought:

"hmm, google should really have this built in"

Re:Worst name

There are so many rogue antispyware applications: http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.h tm [spywarewarrior.com] that all the good names have been taken. Plus it dodges the semantics issue over deciding if something is adware or spyware or malware or whatever. Just call it all badware instead.

Only On Price?

Then why arent the roads full of KIA sportages?

And what keeps Apple alive? Last i heard the ipod cost more then a creative labs version..

Who is buying all these Glocks, instead of cheap kel-tecs?

Designer shoes?

Yep, we americans *only* think of price.

Re:Yay, China is in on it...

the Chinese learn engrish about as well as our Indian friends...

WTF?

How many US-ians have bothered to learn a foreign language? What percentage even have passports?

Very many Chinese and Indians speak excellent English, and tens of millions of each speak better English than almost any Americans do Mandarin or Hindi.

How good is your Punjabi? How about your Cantonese? And how about your friends and neighbours?

Cheney was wrong, this won't be the New American Century. The Chinese and Indians are waking up, and there are more of them, they have more resources, better educations and still have actual industries. They understand us better than we do them, and they don't trust us either...

I'm going to shut up now as I'm starting to veer OT, but my point is, you'd do very well not to underestimate 37% of the world's people so casually (that's not including the Chinese and Indians living abroad)! For every American there are 4.5 Chinese and 3.6 Indians, and they are not dumb.

Re:Yeah...

whats annoying about the google toolbar, is that once its installed, it'll modify the "run" bar if you add one to your task bar. it'll prevent launching local applications, and isntead try to search on google for what ever you type in. i find the bar quite handy for typing in simple things like "notepad" or "calc" all the time. i have no idea if google ever fixed this problem, but its an annoyance enough that i wont be running anything that has the google toolbar at all. its even more annoying that so many applications come bundled with that thing now.

Re:Yay, China is in on it...

http://www.engrish.com/ [engrish.com] Yes, I know it's kind of off topic, but I'm merely providing information related to the parent post, thus making it on topic.

Re:Hrm..

Yeah, I saw that too. But I guess I should have downloaded WinXPPro+SP2+CRACK instead of WinXPPro+SP2+CRACK+SPYWARE+ADWARE+MALWARE+GOATSE_T HEME

Stupid me!

Re:Sun & Google... is there a "target"?

I just don't understand why Valve Steam isn't classified as adware and spyware.

I mean, it advertises, it reports back information about my system and such that I can't stop...