More BitTorrent fireworks went off over the July 4th holiday. After the last episode it was inevitable that the pests would come crawling back, but so soon? I plucked two files and installed them to get the details, but I saw at least a dozen more files that are likely to have the same installer. Here’s what I found out so far.
They’re doing it again! Read More »
About a year ago, I was helping a friend with some minor computer problems in his small business in Rio. He is a pretty smart guy, but his computer knowledge was lacking, and I wanted to help. As we sat down at the computer, we got the familiar XP error message that asked us whether we want to send the error details back to Microsoft. My neophyte friend hit “Do Not Send” immediately. When I asked why, he said “I don’t trust those bastards for anything and I would never send personal information over the internet to them.”
Take a look at our in-depth investigation of infected files distributed via BitTorrent P2P networks and you’ll start to understand how hopeless it is to expect the adware industry to police itself. In some cases I think the problem is that adware companies are truly naive about how they are being played by their affiliate networks. In others, it’s easy to see that the companies are working hard on their see-no-evil position to futher their own company goals. Whether they’re being played for suckers or silently participating in this nasty business, the outcome for consumers is the same.
Shameless Optimism Read More »
Since early in 2002, we have been using an ad network called Tribal Fusion that serves banner and popup ads to our web site. And since 2002, I have hated these popup ads. Dave would regularly bother me to kill the popup ads, but we just could not afford to do it. Advertisers are willing to pay a significant premium for pop up ads, and at times they have been a significant portion of our revenues. Although XP Service Pack 2 initially provided a respite to users with its built-in popup blocker, nearly all the ad networks have found ways around popup blockers, which makes the popups even more annoying.
Tribal Fusion Advertising Read More »
We only wish it could be under happier circumstances!
PC Pitstop has long owned the domain name pctuneup.com, which you may have entered into your browser to get here. For more than five years, PC Pitstop has been helping users get the most out of their PCs. We have worked aggressively to raise awareness of problems such as spyware and adware that can invade your privacy and ruin your online experience. We are proud to say that we have not even let legal threats stop our efforts.
Welcome to PC Pitstop…Even if you made a typo Read More »
Beware of Phishing Scams by Rob Cheng There is a growing menace on the Internet called phishing. In simple terms, phishing can be defined as using fraudulent emails and web sites to trick you into revealing passwords and user names. The scary part is that phishing is becoming a growing and thriving industry. AntiPhishing.org reported
Beware of Phishing Scams Read More »
PC Pitstop has mentioned the problem with spyware and kids before, but last week’s CNet spyware conference showed it isn’t going to be easy getting quick and meaningful action on this issue. It’s too bad. While some adware makers like WhenU seemed to be genuinely interested in changing their ways, others like Claria seemed intentionally evasive and unwilling to change any of their practices.
By making some small changes in the way you use your PC, you can greatly increase the amount of privacy you enjoy and reduce the risk that personal information is stolen or exposed. Create Multiple User Accounts Often, a new PC comes set up for a single user. And that’s just the way people tend
Avoid Privacy Problems Read More »
2005 is shaping up to be a very interesting year. Major League Baseball is being turned upside down this year due to former player, Jose Canseco’s book, Juiced. Baseball will never be the same, and one day we will look back on this period in baseball with a form of amazement that it could have happened at all. As I think about it, I can not help but see the parallels between spyware and baseball’s steroid problem.
Five years have gone by since we opened up shop in March 2000 with a little web site called PC Pitstop. We certainly had our challenges during the first few years. The stock market bubble burst the same month we opened our doors, and September 11th dealt us another blow. We managed to get through those tough times, though, and things are looking up today.
Happy Birthday PC Pitstop! Read More »