Adware info

[Tanooki]

I have read a few of the threads discussing Adware. It's not something I have paid much attention to in the past, but it looks like I should be.

Are there simple ways of identifying if your system is infected or is it more complex than that?

Is anti-virus software enough to keep Adware off your PC or does it require a different approach?

Thanks

Luke

[newbie]

Originally Posted by Tanooki

I have read a few of the threads discussing Adware. It's not something I have paid much attention to in the past, but it looks like I should be.

Are there simple ways of identifying if your system is infected or is it more complex than that?

Is anti-virus software enough to keep Adware off your PC or does it require a different approach?

Thanks

Luke

Antivirus Software will not keep Adware off your computer as installation of adware is a conscious decision by the user.

Adware usually comes bundled with a free offer or utility and the agreement to accept the installation of adware is usually buried after line 10,000 of the EULA. Estimates of adware infection vary widely. 15% upwards on business computers and 30% upwards on home computers would be a good guess. Home computers in houses with teenagers are almost 100% certain to have adware installed. Young males (fearless clickers) are targetted by adware companies.

If a friend complains that their computer is running slowly it will almost certainly be adware.

http://www.benedelman.org/

Ben Edelman is an authority on Adware.

Criminals use adware to prey on both merchants and affiliates.

They steal from merchants by setting a cookie as the adware-infected buyer enters the shopping cart URL. The merchant pays a commission on their own organic traffic.

They steal from affiliates by replacing the affiliate's cookie with a later-dated cookie.

Adware criminals cannot prosper without an affiliate association with a network. Without a bagman to collect the money there would be no reason for criminal affiliates to pay click fees to the adware companies to target merchant shopping carts.

There is no easy fix to combat adware.

The only action an ethical affiliate can take is not send traffic.

Merchants can test their sales process with adware-infected machines to ensure that they are not paying commissions to criminals.

Networks can eject criminal affiliates as soon as they are discovered.

In Australia, DGM and CG deserve medals for their decisive actions in the past year or so. If only the overseas networks were as keen to combat this menace.

[Tanooki]

Thanks for the detailed response Newbie. I can now see why this is such a big issue for both affiliates and merchants.

Not being too immersed in the issue, I was initially concerned about my own PC having Adware. But of course the real issue for affiliates is all of our customers' computers having it - I was a bit slow on the uptake there

Good to know that DGM and CG have been stamping it out. I have a few programs with CJ - do you know their attitude and application to Adware fighting?

Thanks

[newbie]

Originally Posted by Tanooki

Thanks for the detailed response Newbie. I can now see why this is such a big issue for both affiliates and merchants.

Not being too immersed in the issue, I was initially concerned about my own PC having Adware. But of course the real issue for affiliates is all of our customers' computers having it - I was a bit slow on the uptake there

Good to know that DGM and CG have been stamping it out. I have a few programs with CJ - do you know their attitude and application to Adware fighting?

Thanks

A complaint was made a year ago to CJ about a Queensland affiliate who was stealing from the StrawberryNet (HK) shopping cart. Eventually, StrawberryNet IT was convinced to carry out testing themselves and this produced the desired result.

Individuals within CJ know the issues but of course CJ is a larger organisation which moves more slowly.

The USD$1M they had to pay out to settle a class action in April this year may bring about change.

CJ makes all the right noises but does not give the instant results provided by those two networks in Australia. If all networks reacted like DGM and CG there would not be an adware problem, wordwide.