Sneaky Buggers!

I'm getting tired of it. The internet is full of snoops and infiltrators. Does anyone respect your privacy anymore? I'm talking about those add ons, extensions, toolbars, information harvesters that install on your computer when you are not paying attention.

The internet is rife with these pests. It used to be that there were options. You used to be able to deselect an install or deny acceptance of a term of service so that a particular software would not get installed onto your computer with your intended software. Not so much anymore. Many freeware downloads force you to install these malware. They claim it's not malware but I consider it malware. If it installs on my system without my permission, it's unwelcome.

I realize that freware may come at a price. There are chances you take. Some companies offer an option to donate, which I am more than willing to do if I find the software useful. And, I have in the past for software that I have felt was exceptional. The problem is that there are companies out there who are taking what otherwise is freeware and attaching them to installers which have these kinds of malware.

Software like Spybot Search and Destroy, Hamster Free Video Converter among others. DO NOT DOWNLOAD SOFTWARE FROM ANYONE OTHER THAN THE DEVELOPER. I realize this should be second nature but even CNet(previously download.com) has these malware on their site. It's frustrating to say the least.

I'm talking specifically of:

• Babylon (translator)
• Whitesmoke
• Mystart

I know that there are others and these are growing. The internet is turning into a minefield of spyware and malware. Be alert! I have loaded sites which automatically try to make you save a file that you may not have even clicked on. Don't click save. Don't click ok. Sure anyone doing so would be stupid right? No, it can happen and I am pretty diligent about keeping my computer clean.

These extensions can be extremely difficult to get rid of and if you are using Google Chrome, good luck. Chrome doesn't have about:config (a deep configuration profile that you can access via the address bar of FireFox). Even more difficult to remove in Internet explorer.

Educate yourself and stay alert. Some very innocent looking sites can have these kinds of malware.

Check these pages out:

Babylon hell
Undwanted Extensions
Whitesmoke Hell
Mystart Hell

Safe surfing folks.