There are many software vendors that bundle third-party applications with their software.  This is a controversial practice at best, or down right despicable; depending on your point a view.

Calendar of Updates has been compiling quite a list of applications that come bundle with third-party applications.

Calendar of Updates - Installers Hall of Shame (unwanted add-ons) - Calendar Entry (for the current list)
Calendar of Updates - Post your dodgy installers which pre-check things, A collage for our members to view? - Forum discussion

CoU’s - Installers Hall of Shame - as of 06 July, 2008

• Adobe Flash Player - Google Toolbar
• Adobe Reader - eBay Desktop
• AOL Instant Messenger - AOL Toolbar
• Apple’s Software Updater - Safari Browser, QuickTime, iTunes
• Applian FLV Player - Yahoo Toolbar
• AVG 8 - AVG Security Toolbar (Yahoo Search bar)
• BitComet - Google Toolbar
• CCleaner (standard installer) - Yahoo Toolbar <<<Offers ‘Lite’ version, without toolbar
• Comodo Firewall Pro - Ask Toolbar (This toolbar is detected as spyware/adware by several vendors)
• Cyberlink PowerDVD 8 - Google Toolbar and BETA of Moovielive
• Daemon Tools - Search tool and sponsor ad module
• DivX - Yahoo Toolbar
• GoogleTalk - no addon but will change default search setting of IE
• GoogleEarth - Pre checked Google Toolbar installation
• ICQ 6 - ICQ Toolbar
• Iobit advanced one care - Yahoo Toolbar (selecting no will still do changes on the system)
• IrfanView (Google Toolbar for IE and Google Desktop Search)
• Logitech Setpoint (Logitech Yahoo! Toolbar)
• MP3 WMA Converter - Yahoo Search and Delio Comparsion Shopping Toolbar
• Nero Burning Rom - Ask Toolbar (This toolbar is detected as spyware/adware by several vendors)
• PC Tools Firewall Plus - Google Toolbar and Threatfire
• RealPlayer - Google Toolbar
• Shockwave Player - Norton Security Scan or Google Toolbar
• Skype - Google Toolbar
• Spyware Doctor - Google Toolbar
• Spyware Terminator - Web security guard, Crawler
• Sun Java RE (online installer) - Google Toolbar
• Sun Java - OpenOffice.org
• Trillian - Ask Toolbar and Weather Channel Desktop
• Veoh media player - Yahoo toolbar, search engine change & search protection
• Webroot SpySweeper - Ask Toolbar (This toolbar is detected as spyware/adware by several vendors)
• Winamp - Winamp Toolbar
• Windows Live Installer - Windows Live Toolbar and Sign-in Assistant
• Windows Update - Windows Genuine Advantage Notification - (pre-checked, not required, should not be high-priority)
• Windows SteadyState - Windows Live Toolbar
• Winzip - RegistryBooster
• xplorer2Lite - Conduit toolbar
• YaHoo! Instant Messenger - YaHoo! toolbar, with ‘YaHoo! Search Protection’ and homepage change to YaHoo!
• ZoneAlarm - SpyBlocker (Ask Toolbar) (This toolbar is detected as spyware/adware by several vendors)

Screenshot from my visit to the IE Antivirus Free Scanner Web Page:

Can you spot what’s not right with this picture?  The answer is found in the red-boxed text.

Somehow they managed to identify my Operating System as Windows, when my Browser information says I’m on Linux.

Now keep in mind that your Operating System is part of the information transmitted by your web browser when connecting to a web site.

Things that make you go H’m!

Stay tuned more to follow of this particular scam.

The Internet has brought us many joys. It’s rewritten the rules of business and pleasure.

And pain. For it allows what may have seemed like bright ideas at the time (’let’s use it to make sure our customers have the latest software’, for example) to turn into a stinking pit of misery — usually, but by no means always, after marketing gets its fangs in.

Here are just ten of the guilty parties who try to do the impossible: to make us hate the internet and wish it had never been invented — and who very nearly succeed. -

Calls on Senate for civil penalties

There has been some interesting developments with Enigma Software Group, Inc of late. First a corporate name change to City Loan, Inc; and now new developments on their web site.

Is this a simple case of hacking?

Coverage at the Certifiedbug.com Blog:
Enigma software, have they been hacked, or…
Enigma of enigma software

Coverage at Vitalsecurity.org:
Scan your entire computer to detect…..wait, what…

Enigma has a somewhat controversial past:
Enigma Software, A Mystery?
Enigma Software Group did it again?
Anti-Spyware 101: Another Site Pushing SpyHunter
SpyHunter, should this be listed as a Rogue Anti-Spyware Application?
411-spyware.com - The new forum spammers?
Spyware Help: Intent Matters Alot:Part 2
I’m on it, Get on it, The troops are on fire

EDIT: Added link to write up by PaperGhost over at Vitalsecurity.org

In May 2007, Bellvue, Wash.-based Zango, a company that makes software to serve pop-up ads and tracks users’ activities on behalf of online marketers, sued Kaspersky, charging that the company interfered with its business by removing its “adware” without first alerting the user. Kaspersky is hardly alone in classifying Zango’s software as

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think you can tell if you have a virus without av? think you’re smart enough to avoid viruses? you might need to think again

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