full-disclosure - Re: ZoneAlarm phones home

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Date: Thu Jan 26 19:42:56 2006
From: davek_throwaway at hotmail.com (Dave Korn)
Subject: Re: ZoneAlarm phones home

Ivan . wrote:
> http://www.infoworld.com/article/06/01/13/73792_03OPcringley_1.html

  Sadly lacking in any details whatsoever, that article.

  I have once in the past noticed ZA doing a check-for-updates despite 
having configured it off, so I know there is at the very least a bug there, 
but I have no reason to suppose that was anything other than a bug; if it 
was a surreptitious backdoor or spyware, it would be bloody stupid to pop up 
the "There is an update available, do you want to download it?" dialog, but 
that's what it did.

  Without seeing the content of these packets, I don't see how Cringely can 
claim to know whether there's anything spyware or not about it.  There is no 
*evidence* for his claim.  I'm always suspicious of people who claim to have 
observed 'spyware phoning home' but who are then completely unable to give 
any details about the contents or destination of the packets, since it means 
that they are claiming something that they don't actually know at all.

  See also

http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=29254

    cheers,
      DaveK
-- 
Can't think of a witty .sigline today....