About a week after Zango settled with the Federal Trade Commission for $3 million concerning its adware installation procedures, the FTC has its eyes set on a similar battle with ERG Ventures and Timothy P. Taylor, one of its affiliates.
ERG and the affiliate were ordered by the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada to stop distributing false and misleading software. The FTC claims that users who download ERG’s screensavers, videos, or other speciously “clean” software, are tricked into also downloading spyware without their knowledge.
The FTC also issued a permanent order against ERG and Taylor, and wants both parties to return their “ill-gotten” gains.
The spyware in question is called Media Motor, which the FTC said has been installed on millions of computers without users’ consent. The program altered the user’s home page, installed toolbars that delivered unwanted pop-up ads, tracked the user’s online behavior, added advertising icons to the user’s desktop, hindered the computer’s performance, and disabled programs aimed at protecting the user from spyware and viruses.
In addition, the programs installed are difficult and sometimes impossible for users to remove from their computers.
Like Zango’s case, the FTC claims that ERG and Taylor did not inform users that the free software would be bundled with malware. The FTC also said that the End User License Agreement that was given to users was misleading, giving the appearance that users would have the choice of installing the malware, when in reality the choice was not theirs.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington D.C. is conducting a corresponding criminal investigation of both parties involved.
According to the FTC, Microsoft helped in the scrutiny of ERG Ventures.
Consumers who have been affected by ERG and/or Taylor are asked to contact the FTC at mediamotor@ftc.gov with any relevant information.
Sources:
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=
viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=cybercrime_hacking&
articleId=9005016&taxonomyId=82
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3643551
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