Eliot Spitzer Goes After Spyware

Posted on April 28, 2005

Wired reports on New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's new war on spyware. Spitzer, who is attempting to follow in the footsteps of Rudi Guiliani and a higher national profile, filed a civil suit against Intermix Medica of Los Angeles. Intermix is being sued over their installation of unwanted spyware and adware on unwary computer users.

Spitzer said the suit filed in New York City against Intermix Media of Los Angeles combats the redirecting of home computer users to unwanted websites and its own website that includes ads, the adding of unnecessary toolbar items and the delivery of unwanted ads that pop up on computer screens. After a six-month investigation, Spitzer concluded the company installed a wide range of advertising software on countless personal computers nationwide.
"Spyware and adware are more than an annoyance," Spitzer said. "These fraudulent programs foul machines, undermine productivity and in many cases frustrate consumers' efforts to remove them from their computers. These issues can serve to be a hindrance to the growth of e-commerce."
Spitzer's civil suit accuses Intermix of violating state General Business Law provisions against false advertising and deceptive business practices. He also accuses them of trespass under New York common law.
The company is accused of download ads and software that directs ads to a computer based on the user's activities. Spitzer's investigators said the downloads then attach to computers, often slowing their operation and crashing the computers as well as interfering with use of the computer through pop-up ads. Often the downloads were made without notice when a user visited a website, played a game or accepted a screen saver. Sometimes the user was asked permission through an often vague reference in a lengthy licensing agreement which could be misleading or inaccurate, investigators said.

This is only the beginning, says Spitzer. He believes that spyware, adware and identity theft are eroding consumer confidence and slowing the growth of e-commerce. And I couldn't agree more. More power to him.