Spyware/Adware hits BitTorrent

Vox Populi Vox Dei

Vox Populi Vox Dei

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itTorrent users beware, your download may include adware and spyware.

Purveyors of the applications that pop up ads on PC screens and track browsing habits have discovered BitTorrent as a new distribution channel. According to observers of the trend, videos and music that hide adware and spyware are increasingly being offered for download on various BitTorrent Web sites.

BitTorrent has grown into one of the most widely used means of downloading files such as movies or software. Unlike peer-to-peer networks such as Kazaa, eDonkey or the original Napster, no central search technology exists for BitTorrent. Instead, links to specific files are posted on Web sites.

While applications such as Kazaa have long been associated with adware and spyware, BitTorrent has not. Until now, that is. Chris Boyd, a security researcher who runs the Vital Security Web site, found adware and spyware hiding in BitTorrent files.

In one case, an episode of the Fox TV show "Family Guy" was bundled with several pieces of known adware, according to Boyd. "Under that kind of load, a midrange PC can easily go under," Boyd said. Both spyware and adware are known to hurt PC performance because they use PC resources to run.

In other examples, music files and porn videos came bundled with adware or spyware, Boyd said in an e-mail interview. He suspects that online marketers have launched campaigns to get their software installed on more desktops using BitTorrent.

"This is one of the most egregious spyware infestations that we have seen," said Alex Eckelberry, president of Sunbelt Software, a maker of antispyware software. "It is a major concern. It is going to riddle your system with pop ups, slow your system down and potentially cause system instability."

The downloaded files typically were self-extracting archives that would also install the unwanted software, Boyd said. In most cases, users would be presented with a dialog box advising that the extra software was about to be installed and given the impression that the install was needed to get access to the desired content, he said.

However, Boyd found, it was possible to get access to the entertainment the user wanted without installing the adware or spyware. Simply declining the adware and spyware license a couple of times gives access to the content, he said.

On his Web site, Boyd listed a Canadian company as one of the businesses that send out adware and spyware on BitTorrent. That company's Web site appeared to have been hacked Thursday, with the front page replaced with a picture and a profane message stating that the company should leave BitTorrent alone.

As of late Thursday afternoon, BitTorrent creator Bram Cohen had not replied to an e-mail seeking comment on the issue.
Click to expand...

Source: News.com
 
Thats again the same what RIAA did with Kazaa. Infiltrating the community with malware.
Again a last kick of a dying horse..*ggg*
 
Simple cure - dont use windoze :)
 
Hey - an apple a day keeps the gremlins away :)
 
Um - so this bloke shares some torrents that he has injected with spyware, and then does some "research", and then causes a big fuss and gets to have some free marketing.

Note how the article carefully avoids any mention of VIRUSES.

Feeshie Fishy. :p
 
So it doesnt mention viruses - it does talk about adware and spyware which are becoming a annoyance to the average wondoze user are they not?
 
Nothing wrong with Windows and IE if you just follow basic security practices. How hard is it to install a firewall and run an anti-spyware prog once a month? I haven't had spyware in years. I also don't go downloading random stuff with BitTorrent and anyone who is tard enough to do this and not know about spyware deserves to get infected.
 
Perdition said:
Nothing wrong with Windows and IE if you just follow basic security practices. How hard is it to install a firewall and run an anti-spyware prog once a month? I haven't had spyware in years. I also don't go downloading random stuff with BitTorrent and anyone who is tard enough to do this and not know about spyware deserves to get infected.
Click to expand...
Does anyone download random stuff from BitTorrent? You search for the torrent you want and then download it.

If there was nothing wrong with Windows and IE then why are there all of those critical patches they release to patch up newly discovered vulnerabilities? The only way to be truly safe with a windows box is to never plug it in.

I know windoze is the choice of the masses which is why they have the majority of the problems but there are far safer options out there.
 
Perhaps you may be a BitTorrent king but there are many not-so-savvy users out there who search for torrents and blindly trust that every file is safe. As I alluded to previously if they don't educate themselves then they will get infected and nothing MS or any OS manufacturer can do about this short of locking the user out of his PC entirely ;)

All OS manufacturers release security patches for their products, this is not limited to Microsoft (or have you forgotten the recent security updates for Panther and Tiger?). I'd be worried if Microsoft (and others) weren't releasing regular security updates because ALL software has flaws, especially operating systems which contain millions of lines of source code.

Windows is the choice of the masses because it has the most choice of software and people are not going to give up this freedom because they get a bit of spyware now and again. If I really wanted Photoshop, widgets and an interface "you want to lick" I'd get a Mac... cause that's all you really get with it ;)
 
The only thing I agree with is that everyone releases security patches but thats about it.

Everything else has holes bigger than . . . windows I guess you might say.
 
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