Security Basics mailing list archives
Re: alexa - google toolbar behaviour
From: Times Enemy <times () krr org>
Date: Mon, 18 Jul 2005 18:01:17 -0700
Greetings.Search for the phrase, "alexa spyware". I use Google, but if you prefer, Alexa yields similar results.
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=alexa+spyware&btnG=Google+Search http://www.alexa.com/search?q=alexa+spywareI stated that there were some sort of issues, of which i was not 100% nor did i feel compelled to research, with Alexa and spyware. I have not used them since these issues were first presented, at which time i was more familiar with the matter. Having not used their software in several years, i do not know if they have a toolbar or such. I would imagine they do, as any search engine that wants to keep up with what people are after should. :: shrugs ::
.times enemy Burton Strauss wrote:
Every web server request you ever make leaves a log record behind that shows your IP address, information about your browser and the file you requested. Is that spyware??? The difference between spyware and something that helps the browsing experience isn't always totally clear. In order to provide a personalized web browsing experience across web sessions, personally identifiable information needs to be recorded. That's sort of a given. The issue is what else they do with the information. While I think you have to draw a line somewhere, it's a fuzzy process. Personally, I draw the line at how plainly they make it obvious what they're doing. By that standard, Alexa isn't that bad:http://pages.alexa.com/help/privacy.html"ALEXA'S TOOLBAR SERVICE COLLECTS AND STORES INFORMATION ABOUT THE WEB PAGES YOU VIEW, THE DATA YOU ENTER IN ONLINE FORMS AND SEARCH FIELDS, AND, WITH VERSIONS 5.0 AND HIGHER, THE PRODUCTS YOU PURCHASE ONLINE WHILE USING THE TOOLBAR SERVICE. ALTHOUGH ALEXA DOES NOT ATTEMPT TO ANALYZE WEB USAGE DATA TO DETERMINE THE IDENTITY OF ANY ALEXA USER, SOME INFORMATION COLLECTED BY THE TOOLBAR SERVICE IS PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE. ALEXA AGGREGATES AND ANALYZES THE INFORMATION IT COLLECTS TO IMPROVE ITS SERVICE AND TO PREPARE REPORTS ABOUT AGGREGATE WEB USAGE AND SHOPPING HABITS. IN ADDITION, WHEN YOU PERFORM SEARCHES USING THE SEARCH FUNCTION AVAILABLE ON ALEXA'S TOOLBAR SERVICE SOFTWARE VERSION 6.5 AND HIGHER OR ON THE ALEXA WEBSITE, YOU OFTEN WILL BE TAKEN TO A WEBSITE DETAIL PAGE AT AMAZON.COM. IF YOU HAVE AN ACCOUNT ON AMAZON.COM AND AN AMAZON.COM COOKIE ENABLED, YOUR SEARCH RESULTS WILL BE TRANSMITTED TO AND LOGGED BY AMAZON.COM AND MAY BE CORRELATED BY AMAZON.COM WITH ANY PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION YOU MAY HAVE PREVIOUSLY PROVIDED TO AMAZON.COM. Please read the following privacy policy carefully before downloading and using Alexa's Toolbar Service software or using the Alexa website. If you download and use Alexa's Toolbar Service software or use the Alexa website, you will be bound by the terms of the Agreement, including this Privacy Policy. This policy may change from time to time so you should check it frequently." It's actually not that much different from Google's: http://www.google.com/support/toolbar/?quick=privacy&v=3.0 except that Google says they will notify you "... if it materially changes these policies ..." -----Burton
Current thread:
- alexa - google toolbar behaviour Mehmet Buyukozer (Jul 13)
- Re: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Times Enemy (Jul 18)
- RE: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Mehmet Buyukozer (Jul 18)
- what is spyware Was: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Alexander Klimov (Jul 20)
- [!! SPAM] what is spyware Was: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Alexander Klimov (Jul 29)
- RE: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Burton Strauss (Jul 20)
- RE: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Mehmet Buyukozer (Jul 18)
- Re: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Aaron (Jul 20)
- <Possible follow-ups>
- Re: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Times Enemy (Jul 20)
- Re: alexa - google toolbar behaviour Times Enemy (Jul 18)