'Cleaned Up' Zango Now Found 'Cleaning Up' Via MySpace Worm

from the all-cleaned-up,-huh? dept

Mon, Dec 4th 2006 12:58am — Mike Masnick

Remember how spyware maker Zango was supposed to be all cleaned up, following an FTC fine? Yes, the same Zango who everyone kept finding being available via questionable installs? Well, the latest is that a fast-moving MySpace "worm" is all about getting more Zango installs. Not so clean just yet, huh? It's not exactly building anyone's confidence in the idea that Zango has fixed its problems with malicious, sneaky installs.

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10 Comments

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kuronoir, 4 Dec 2006 @ 3:36am

fp
It still amazes me that people download stuff from sites that are not safe and opening attachments they are not expecting from other people. I have been one the net since 94 and never got a virus just following those rules.

its not hard, you just have to realize nothing is free, if they are giving it away, somehow you'll pay. Hey a Johnny Cockran rhyme.
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- hometoast, 4 Dec 2006 @ 4:03am
  
  Re: fp
  if you RTFA you'd see it wasn't the classic definition of downloading, it was embedded in the quicktime movie.
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August West, 4 Dec 2006 @ 4:47am

One of these days...
One of these days I hope to meet someone, somewhere and during the "what do you do" conversation" they say that they work for Zango or 180 solutions, or "an internet marketing firm". And when I do they're gonna get a good old fashioned ass-whipping.
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Avatar28, 4 Dec 2006 @ 5:28am

Yes, but the problem here is that A) people aren't opening attachments B) Most people would expect a major site like MySpace to be safe and C) judging from the past, this is likely being done via drive by download.

Personally, I hope the FTC comes down on their thumbing their nose with a sledge hammer. Shut them down completely or fine the living hell out of them. Whatever the maximum legal fine per infringement is, I say hit them with it for every single installation they did in violation of the order. With any luck it will add up to a few billion and put them out of business completely.
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Me, 4 Dec 2006 @ 6:16am

Government...
The problem with the solution of fining them is... they never fine them.

You get a big a$$ company that does something wrong, they get fined like 0.00000001% of their profits in a year, the company doesn't even blink.

So until someone in the FTC gets the balls to drop a BIG REALISTIC fine on someone companies are going to laugh the fines off and worry more about spinning the bad press back to good press (or at least neutral)
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fedup, 4 Dec 2006 @ 6:24am

If they're getting away with putting the crap on our computers, shouldn't we be allowed to put crap on their computers? Granted it's not as easy as they have it, but I know someone out there could do it. Maybe the whole "taste of their own medicine" would get something going. If they try to get the person (or persons) who do it, the person(s) just needs to argue "hey, apparently they were allowed to put their crap on my computer because the people in charge of regulating that didn't do anything, so I should be allowed to do the same to them".

Something like my own personal policy when it comes to email: You spam me, and I'll spam you right back.
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- Ju1c3, 4 Dec 2006 @ 9:24am
  
  Re:
  I like it, Do unto others as you would have them do unto you or some crap like that. lets spam the hell out of them
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Anonymous Coward, 4 Dec 2006 @ 6:34am

Fines ...
If a gov't agency levees a fine against a company, can the company somehow write that fine off on their taxes?
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Ryan, 4 Dec 2006 @ 9:49am

criminal
we need to stop imposing fines and start dishing out prison sentences.

If I went in your house without your permission and painted your walls a different color, i'd go to jail.

Installing software without permission is the same, and should be punished the same.
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