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[News] [Rival] Proprietary Software Dangerous, Intrusive, Hostile

  • Subject: [News] [Rival] Proprietary Software Dangerous, Intrusive, Hostile
  • From: Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Thu, 03 Jan 2008 13:08:18 +0000
  • Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.advocacy
  • Organization: Netscape / schestowitz.com
  • User-agent: KNode/0.10.4
US-CERT warns of flaw in latest RealPlayer

,----[ Quote ] 
| US-CERT is warning computer users of a possible problem with the latest 
| version of RealPlayer after a Russian security company claimed to have found 
| a way to exploit a critical flaw in the multimedia software.  
`----

http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,140947-c,onlinesecurity/article.html

Researcher Accuses Sears of Spreading Spyware

,----[ Quote ]
| And given the invasive nature of the product, Sears has an obligation to make 
| its behavior clearer to users. "The software is not something you'd want on 
| your computer or the computer of anyone you care about," Edelman said in an 
| interview. "It tracks every site you go to, every search you make, every 
| product you buy, and every product you look at but don't buy. It's just 
| spooky."     
`----

http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,140918-c,onlineprivacy/article.html

Well, Windows Vista and IE7 do exactly that (by design).


Related:

Microsoft could be teaching police to hack Vista

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft may begin training the police in ways to break the
| encryption built into its forthcoming Vista operating system.
`----

http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2150555/microsoft-teaching-police-hack


Microsoft Giving Away Vista and More for Information

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft is giving away free versions of Vista Ultimate, Office 07 Ultimate, 
| and more in exchange for your participation in the Windows Feedback Program. 
| Basically, in exchange for letting Microsoft scan your computer and programs 
| for three months...    
`----

http://www.gamingshogun.com/Default.aspx?a=558


,----[ Quote ]
| Vista--Microsoft’s latest operating system--may prove to be most
| appropriately named, especially for those seeking evidence of how a
| computer was used.
`----

http://www.abanet.org/journal/ereport/jy13tkjasn.html


http://news.softpedia.com/news/Forget-about-the-WGA-20-Windows-Vista-Features-and-Services-Harvest-User-Data-for-Microsoft-58752.shtml


Microsoft patents the mother of all adware systems

,----[ Quote ]
| The adware framework would leave almost no data untouched in its quest to 
| sell you stuff. It would inspect "user document files, user e-mail files, 
| user music files, downloaded podcasts, computer settings, computer status 
| messages (e.g., a low memory status or low printer ink)," and more. How could 
| we have been so blind as to not see the marketing value in computer status 
| messages?     
`----

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070717-microsoft-patents-the-mother-of-all-adware-systems.html


New software can identify you from your online habits

,----[ Quote ]
| That is the spectre raised by new research conducted by Microsoft.
| The computing giant is developing software that could accurately
| guess your name, age, gender and potentially even your location,
| by analysing telltale patterns in your web browsing history. But
| experts say the idea is a clear threat to privacy - and may be
| illegal in some places.
`----

http://www.newscientisttech.com/article.ns?id=mg19426046.400&feedId=being-human_rss20
http://tinyurl.com/2lrazk


UK holds Microsoft security talks

,----[ Quote ]
| "UK officials are talking to Microsoft over fears the new version of 
| Windows could make it harder for police to read suspects' computer files."
`----

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4713018.stm


Data Protection Commissioner criticizes search of private PCs online

,----[ Quote ]
| "In the case of a search via the Internet a police officer covertly,
| without the person knowing about it, accesses a person's computer."
| During such an operation he or she might copy data and obtain all
| kinds of personal documents; the police officer was acting as a "state
| hacker," so to speak. Mr. Schaar observed. "Such an approach is in
| conflict with the legal obligation to protect the core of
| individuals' privacy," Mr. Schaar stated emphatically.
`----

http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/82529/from/rss09


Could Hollywood hack your PC?

,----[ Quote ]
| Congress is about to consider an entertainment industry proposal
| that would authorize copyright holders to disable PCs used for
| illicit file trading.
`----

http://news.com.com/2100-1023-945923.html


German Supreme Court Deems Police Hacking Illegal

,----[ Quote ]
| Germany's supreme court determined Monday that police may not
| secretly hack into suspects' computers. Some are celebrating
| the decision as a civil rights victory, but the ruling may
| not be the last word on the matter.
`----

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2337932,00.html


Data Protection Commissioner criticizes search of private PCs online

,----[ Quote ]
| "In the case of a search via the Internet a police officer covertly,
| without the person knowing about it, accesses a person's computer."
| During such an operation he or she might copy data and obtain all
| kinds of personal documents; the police officer was acting as a "state
| hacker," so to speak. Mr. Schaar observed. "Such an approach is in
| conflict with the legal obligation to protect the core of
| individuals' privacy," Mr. Schaar stated emphatically.
`----

http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/82529/from/rss09


United States Government Online Watchdogs? Part of the war on terror?

,----[ Quote
| Is there anyone in the abandonia community with a US based connection who is 
| experiencing this watchdog behavior? Are any foreign Vista users experiencing 
| similar attacks from their own countries ministries and governing agencies?"   
`----

http://www.whitedust.net/news/3984/United_States_Government_Online_Watchdogs?_Part_of_the_war_on_terror?.../


FBI ducks questions about its remotely installed spyware

,----[ Quote ]
| There are plenty of unanswered questions about the FBI spyware that, as we 
| reported earlier this week, can be delivered over the Internet and implanted  
| in a suspect's computer remotely. 
`----

http://news.com.com/8301-10784_3-9747666-7.html


Yahoo!, Microsoft ink web pact with Chinese government

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft and Yahoo! have signed a pact with the Chinese government 
| that "encourages" the big name web players to record the identities of 
| bloggers and censor content. So says Reporters Without Borders, an 
| organization that fights for journalistic rights across the globe.   
`----

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/24/yahoo_and_microsoft_ink_chinese_blogging_pact/


Microsoft, Yahoo Tailor Ads To Users' Behavior

,----[ Quote ]
| Google will remain on the sidelines — at least for now. But its Web portal 
| rivals are stepping up their efforts to use behavioral targeting to make 
| display, or banner, ads more relevant to Web site visitors.  
`----

http://investors.com/editorial/IBDArticles.asp?artsec=17&issue=20070823


India’s Cops Get Orwellian

,----[ Quote
| If Orwell were brought back from the dead, I presume he’d chuckle and think 
| how little things have changed. He would certainly have been bemused by 
| happenings in India. A few days ago, Mumbai’s police revealed their plans to 
| install keystroke loggers in Mumbai’s cyber cafes, besides imposing licensing 
| requirements on them.    
| 
| [...]
| 
| The government’s rationale (or rationalization) behind this is familiar and 
| silly. Whenever the government wants to restrict freedom, it invokes 
| security, and cops justify this move under the grounds of fighting terrorism. 
| Well, firstly, at a practical level, the cops won’t have the manpower to 
| scrutinize the massive volume of keystroke logs generated everyday, or to 
| figure out what is terrorist code and what is teenage lingo. Secondly, at a 
| moral level, it is simply wrong to deny people of their privacy in this 
| manner.       
`----

http://indiauncut.com/iublog/article/indias-cops-get-orwellian/


US politicians go to bat for Microsoft

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/26/microsoft_eu_political_lobbying/


Report Says Nonprofits Sold Influence to Abramoff

,----[ Quote ]
| E-mails released by the committee show that Abramoff, often
| with the knowledge of the groups' leaders, exploited the tax-exempt
| status and leveraged the stature of the organizations to build
| support among conservatives for legislation or government action
| sought by clients including Microsoft Corp., mutual fund company
| DH2 Inc., Primedia Inc.'s Channel One Network, and Brown-Forman,
| maker of Jack Daniel's whiskey.
`----

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/12/AR2006101200889.html
http://tinyurl.com/y2rbpu


Politicians in Microsoft's Pocket

,----[ Quote ]
| Continuing on the theme of which politicians are receiving money from 
| who. Here is a list of candidates who took money from MSFT.
`----

http://www.fonz.net/blog/archives/2007/06/04/politicians-in-microsofts-pocket/


Politics and tech companies: follow the money

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft took first place with $651,100 given out, while
| Hewlett-Packard gave only $185,550, and Gateway gave a paltry
| $2,000. Microsoft's donations certainly illustrate well the true
| size of the company and the extent of its political concerns.
`----

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061110-8194.html

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