U.S. Seeks to Stop a Spyware Operation
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In what regulators are calling a first, the government has asked for a court order to shut down a spyware operation.
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The US Federal Trade Commission last week sued an outfit that it says is using spyware to bombard computer users with pop-up ads in order to promote anti-spyware products called Spy Wiper or Spy Deleter.
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(InfoWorld) - Even though security technology is improving, spyware legislation is still needed from the U.S. Congress because many consumers don't use all the tech tools available to them, antispyware groups said Thursday. Antispyware groups including the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) and StopBadware.org called on Congress to pass antispyware legislation during the last days of the 2006 session. Although some studies show a small decrease in the amount of spyware on PCs, the use of spyware that logs keystrokes seems to be going up, said Ari Schwartz, deputy director of the CDT. "The issue is everyone's still making money doing this," Schwartz said during an antispyware discussion in Washington, D.C. Spyware distributors identified by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or the CDT can pull in tens of millions of dollars in revenue annually, he added. Antispyware technology can work, but 81 percent of home PC users don't use all three common security tools -- antispyware software, antivirus software and firewalls -- according to a survey published in December by AOL LLC and the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA). "We still think consumers are not protected," said Ron Teixeira, the NCSA's executive director. "If they don't take these three core measures, it doesn't matter what we do." The House of Representatives passed two antispyware bills in May 2005, but the full Senate has yet to act on similar legislation introduced there. Paul Cancienne, a legislative assistant for Representative Mary Bono, said his boss is optimistic that the Senate can still pass legislation and the two chambers can iron out their differences before Congress adjourns in October. Bono, a California Republican, pushed forward legislation that would require many software programs collecting personal information to get permission before doing so. Bono's Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespass Act also would outlaw the act of taking over a computer in order to send unauthorized information or code, and diverting a Web browser without the permission of the computer owner. The bill, which passed the House by a 389-vote margin, would allow fines of up to US$3 million for spyware-like activity. Security software updates are exempted from the Bono bill. In addition to legislation, antispyware groups need to continue to educate consumers about online dangers and ways to combat them, said NCSA's Teixeira. Many people don't know how to properly use security software or are confused about products out there, he said. Many of the discussion's participants said legislation that would define illegal practices and give the FTC more power to work with overseas law enforcement agencies would help fight spyware. But not everyone there saw more legislation as an improvement. A new law could bring unintended consequences for the tech industry, said John Palafoutas, senior vice president for domestic policy and congressional affairs at tech trade group AeA. Palafoutas pointed to studies that say a significant percentage of time consumers spend online is looking at pornography sites, identified by StopBadware.org as major sources of spyware. "I'm wary of a legislative fix," Palafoutas said. "Part of the problem is there's a lot of recklessness out there."
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Measures to curb the use of "spyware" -- the computer programs that surreptitiously track people's online movements -- are steamrolling their way through Congress and a combined proposal could reach the President's desk before lawmakers break for the November election.
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On a unanimous vote the US House of Representatives Thursday approved a bill making many &quot;spyware&quot; activities illegal. Spyware can be surreptitiously loaded into a computer via the Internet and extract information
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Democratic commissioner says agency would be much more effective in halting deceptive spyware makers if Congress allowed it to levy hefty monetary penalties.
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Leading security software vendor PC Tools is pleased to see House  passage of the Internet Spyware (I-Spy) Prevention Act of 2007,  providing the justice system with greater power and resources to  prosecute cyber criminals. "We need to give these criminals more than a  slap on the wrist.
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Spyware legislation that would allow fines of up to $3 million for makers of spyware software will get a second look even though the U.S. Congress failed to pass the legislation last year.
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Technique claims to be able to stop Internet worms within milliseconds of an outbreak.
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Internet cafes that fail to enforce the strict rules governing their use are being shut down by the government. Also: Companies worry that the spyware buck will stop with them & hellip;.  High-tech outsourcing to India continues  & hellip;. and more.
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SPY ACT would allow fines of up to $3 million for some types of spyware.
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The Federal Trade Commission has asked a US District Court to shut down a computer spyware operation. The FTC said Tuesday the operation hijacks computers, secretly changes their
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In ordering a New Hampshire man to stop sending spyware that takes over parts of a user&#39;s computer, a federal judge has sent a warning shot at spammers in the United States.
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Anti-spyware legislation sails through the House of Representatives, with the bill's sponsor pressing to have both houses approve a law to reign in invasive computer programs by the end of the year. By Michael Grebb.
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Spyware, an amorphous class of software that mostly gets onto computers without their usersâ knowledge, has become epidemic in the past year as people spend more time online and spyware developers get more aggressive.
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During the past few months, the Federal Trade Commission has filed deceptive- advertising cases against two distributors of what is called adware or spyware. The insidious form of software subjects consumers and their computers to unwanted advertising and surveillance.
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The non-profit Internet Education Foundation, along with computer maker Dell, launch a campaign to help consumers fend off spyware. Their first step is to publish tips and tutorials to help internet users stay safe.