Avast gets its whatsit caught in the wringer

[Steve Rindsberg]

https://www.webpronews.com/avast-cau...wsing-history/

tl;dr I'd uninstall it if you got it.

[terrie]

I use Avast Free custom installed with just a few of their offered components installed one of which is their Web Shield--for my desktop system which uses an older version (7.0.1474), I also install the File System Shield, Network Shield, Behavior Shield and Script Shield--the newer versions of Avast Free consolidated some of these shields. I have never installed any of the other components Avast offers primarily because I consider them crap, things like: Software Updater, Browser Cleanup, Rescue Disk, wi-fi Inspector, Security Browser Exetension, SafePrice Browser Extension. I also UNcheck any "sharing", "community", etc. type options in the Avast Free settings and I've never established an account with them. The laptop I use as a testbed/backup has a more current version (20.x) of Avast custom installed with just the File Shield and Web Shield with any/all "sharing" "community", etc. options Unchecked.


Given the WebProNews and PC Mag article, at this point whatever crap they've learned from me is a done deal so given that Avast has announced (1/30/20) that they "...would shut down operations at Jumpshot", what's the point of uninstalling their software? Of course who really knows if Avast will really fully disassociate with Jumpshot and not start the process up somewhere else? How do I know that any other antivirus software isn't doing the same thing and, my gut feeling is that amazon, google, et al likely have even more info on me.



I try to mitigate online private data grabs through not only the use of things like the Request Policy and iMatrix addons but, also in the way I move about online. In writing this reply, I've used 3 different browsers/versions. Now, none of that may make any damned bit of difference but, maybe it does...'-}}



Why yes...I do often live in a fantasy world...'-}}




Terrie

[Bo Aakerstrom]

I am using the mobile version. It is a very simple thing to disable sharing your information.

Granted, Avast! should have been more transparent about it.

I wonder how many other free applications share your information with others - for profit or not!

Free often has a price...

[terrie]

bo: Free often has a price...

Oh yeah...'-}}



Apparently Avast's stock market has taken a hit which is not surprising.




Terrie

[Kayza]

Originally Posted by terrie

Given the WebProNews and PC Mag article, at this point whatever crap they've learned from me is a done deal so given that Avast has announced (1/30/20) that they "...would shut down operations at Jumpshot", what's the point of uninstalling their software? Of course who really knows if Avast will really fully disassociate with Jumpshot and not start the process up somewhere else? How do I know that any other antivirus software isn't doing the same thing and, my gut feeling is that amazon, google, et al likely have even more info on me.

It's not a done deal because they continually track your behavior on the web.

Given the other stuff they have pulled (and got kicked out of both Mozilla and Google extension libraries for it), their whole approach seems to stink to high heavens. I really don't trust them to not share data through other means if it suits them. And there is nothing in their model that gives them an advantage to keeping this data secret.

Google probably does have more information on you, but they do NOT sell it or share it. Their entire business model depends on them being the only ones with access to that data. They are also very competent and careful, so it's unlikely that your data is being shared.

Amazon is different kettle of fish. On the one hand, many aspects of their business model do get an advantage to having data that others don't have. But what's been going on with Ring, both in terms of the things they knowingly did (like the level of sharing with the police) and the really sloppy security they've had make me wonder about their overall posture. I certainly would NOT buy a Ring product at this point.

[terrie]

kayza: Google probably does have more information on you, but they do NOT sell it or share it.

I don't believe that G's sharing would be/is limited to Alphabet-owned subs/companies when it would benefit G's bottom line...



>> I certainly would NOT buy a Ring product at this point.

I think that's a wise approach...'-}}



I don't really know why I'm not more outraged (or at least pissed-off) at Avast's actions but, I'm not. I don't know if it's because I use older versions of their antivirus software or if it's a question of this being so common (on any number of levels) by companies that I no longer react, or if it's just that it's too annoying to go look for new a/v software to use...

I just don't know...'-}}




Terrie

[Barrie Greed]

Terrie

I'm an AVG user but I'm not particularly worried either.

Despite the fact that everybody is supposed to know everything about me my experience is that when it comes to serving up adverts everybody seems completely clueless. I very rarely see anything advertised which I am remotely interested in. Yesterday when I picked up my Compuserve mail Verizon decided I would like to buy a black jacket with a gold filagree pattern on it. Today they think I am interested in buying £50,000 worth of Audi sports car. I have zero interest in either.

The only time they manage to advertise something I might have an interest in they are too late.

So it's time to visit the outlaws in Canada. I search for cheap plane tickets on Google, compare what's on offer and buy some tickets to Toronto. Then I'll probably book the first night in a hotel so nobody ends up hanging around for a delayed flight. For the next three weeks I'll be inundated with adverts for flights to Toronto and Toronto Hotels. But I'm no longer interested.

Perhaps I am better at keeping my data secret than I think!

Do you find that 'targeted advertising' has any idea of your interests?

Barrie Greed

[terrie]

barrie: I'm an AVG user but I'm not particularly worried either.

I tried AVG many eons ago but moved on to another antivirus--Avira I think and then Avast free...




>> Do you find that 'targeted advertising' has any idea of your interests?

I use an adblocker in all my browsers so I have absolutely no idea--nor do I care--what they think they are showing me...'-}}



I rarely use google to search. 99.999% of the time I use duckduckgo.com which is not supposed to track but...who knows. If I can't find what I'm looking for in the search results returned from DDG, then I try google but most of the time DDG returns useful results. I don't keep cookies for either google or DDG or much of anything else for that matter--just my bank and a couple of other places--so neither google nor ddg (or pretty much everywhere else) has that sort of info on me...


Why don't you use an adblocker?




Terrie

[Barrie Greed]

Terrie

Why don't you use an adblocker?

I don't have a problem with advertising. It is what keeps the web effectively free. Without it we would probably end up with a subscription model or have many Jimmy Wales pressing us for donations every time we logged on to a site.


I am quite happy to see ads. I am just baffled that on the basis that the folk placing the ads should know everything about me they do a pretty poor job of targeting ads.


Barrie Greed

[Steve Rindsberg]

>> I am just baffled that on the basis that the folk placing the ads should know everything about me they do a pretty poor job of targeting ads.

This.

And at the same time, it can be entertaining to see some of the utterly off-the-wall* stuff they throw at me.

* off-the-planet in some cases