AIM add-on sparks privacy concerns

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America Online began offering games along with the latest version of its instant messenger, and now some customers are worried that the company is playing with them, too.

People who use AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) started complaining on AOL message boards and publications such as BroadbandReports.com after software bundled with AIM 5.5 began showing up in "spyware" scans. The popular chat application includes games from WildTangent, which has a tool that reports back to the company every time someone uses its products. WildTangent CEO Alex St. John denied that his company is doing anything improper. "It's not doing anything sneaky; it doesn't pop up anything," he said. "It tells us how popular a piece of content we release on the Internet is."

Benign or not, the software and the controversy it has sparked highlight growing sensitivity among consumers over unexpected surprises accompanying free software downloads over the Net--and the potential backlash facing companies that seek to quietly gather data on their customers.

News source: C|Net News.com

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(1 reply) #1 best_uv_d_best on 03 Mar 2004 - 17:35

hmmm... statistics tracking... not always bad if done properly.

#1.1 Milliamp on 04 Mar 2004 - 02:16

They have a word for software that tracks what you do, it is called spyware.
Use Trillian.

(1 reply) #2 bangbang023 on 03 Mar 2004 - 17:40

just uninstall it then. I installed aim then ran spybot and got rid of wildtangent. It's not like the app won't run without wildtangent, just the games won't work.

#2.1 Joshie on 04 Mar 2004 - 16:08

Of course, then you wouldn't be using the games. And if you didn't use the games in the first place, no tracking would take place, because it's only activated when you launch a game. So getting rid of WildTangent is absolutely no different from simply not using a feature that everyone seems to hate anyway.

(3 replies) #3 PseudoRandomDragon on 03 Mar 2004 - 18:19

More reason to use GAIM, the open source AIM client.

#3.1 kemical on 03 Mar 2004 - 20:28

true

#3.2 htmc on 04 Mar 2004 - 01:15

And awfulness would be one reason not to use GAIM, the open source AIM client.

#3.3 helloalexb on 05 Mar 2004 - 00:45

GAIM is too buggy. Back to AIM

#4 Jugalator on 03 Mar 2004 - 21:02

"It's not doing anything sneaky; it doesn't pop up anything,"

... like you need to use popups to do something sneaky...

(3 replies) #5 norky on 03 Mar 2004 - 21:26

omg spywarez! you better get rid of it! aol has nothing better to do than to track us idiots all day long. no wonder they always know where to send the free cds...

#5.1 jameseuk on 04 Mar 2004 - 02:44

yeah,they like sending more more than 1 to people

#5.2 shinma on 04 Mar 2004 - 19:02

AOL isn't doing the tracking, Wild Tangent is. Their game launcher/engine is just bundled with the latest AIM - essentially the same as if you play WT games anywhere else on the web, it still tracks you with the thingy it installs.

Some of the WT games are kinda fun as a distraction, but not worth spyware and other resident components it leaves on your system, if ya ask me. Now their motion-cap dancing girl Winamp plugins... heh... that's another story. ;P

#5.3 chacho on 04 Mar 2004 - 20:09

QUOTE (#5.0)

omg spywarez!

stupid.

(2 replies) #6 oo420oo on 04 Mar 2004 - 03:42

AIM is for n00bs. Crapware.

#6.1 IRCRomeo on 04 Mar 2004 - 03:59

QUOTE (#6.0)

AIM is the best messaging program. Everyone has it.

#6.2 no-sweat on 04 Mar 2004 - 04:03

i hate nerds

(1 reply) #7 shockz on 04 Mar 2004 - 03:53

Use Trilliian, Use Gaim, blah blah blah... i'm sure if you visit neowin then you already know about these. There's no need to turn into a fanboy and post use this or that.

#7.1 GizzyProphet on 04 Mar 2004 - 04:57

Use Miranda

#8 jplanc on 04 Mar 2004 - 12:06

How many people actually use the AIM games anyway...

#9 mruocky on 05 Mar 2004 - 19:39

DeadAIM was just updated a few days ago to work with the latest version of AIM.

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