posted
I was chatting earlier today and I saw someone ask about bonzai buddy. A few people agreed that it sucked and/or messed up their computer. Another person said that it's a virus and/or is a gateway to other viruses...I remeber it being useless, there was a gorilla? Input please
-------------------- "Fate is like a strange, unpopular resturant, filled with odd waiters who bring you things you never ask for and don't always like."-Lemony Snicket Posts: 1119 | From: Bronx, NY | Registered: Dec 2005
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-------------------- "When a stupid man is doing something he is ashamed of, he always declares that it is his duty."--George Bernard Shaw Posts: 19266 | From: Nashville, TN | Registered: Jun 2002
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I had Bonzai Buddy back in 2001 I think. A purple gorilla that gave facts and was essentially usesless. I mean, you could type things in and have him say them back to you, but how long is that really fun for?
I'm pretty sure he was filled with spyware, but I could be wrong. Gator software if I'm not mistaken. But that was around the time of Kazaa, and we had no firewall or antivirus back then, so the spyware and viruses could've came from anywhere. Although, I wouldn't be suprised to find out that Bonzai Buddy was completey filled with spyware/viruses.
-------------------- Come on! Ninja kick the damn rabbit! Posts: 273 | From: Ontario, Canada | Registered: May 2004
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posted
is gator software the thing that saved passwords?
-------------------- "Fate is like a strange, unpopular resturant, filled with odd waiters who bring you things you never ask for and don't always like."-Lemony Snicket Posts: 1119 | From: Bronx, NY | Registered: Dec 2005
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posted
Oh wow flashback. My old boss was friends with the guy that created Bonzai buddy. He insisted we install it on the office computer, but I could never figure out what exactly it was supposed to do. My boss was pretty computer illiterate - he could check his stocks online and that was about it.
If it was that messed up that may have explained some of our odder computer problems, but I never used the thing. "Uh-huh ... it's a monkey ... that's nice ..."
-------------------- "He feeds the sparrows of the field, but He doesn't sit there and cram worms into their mouths." -- Mouse Posts: 396 | From: Pasadena, CA | Registered: Jan 2006
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Wow, that woman really knows her software! I had Bonzai Buddy on a PC for all of two days before I decided I didn't need it and I didn't like the way it made its own homepage my default homepage. I was able to delete it and never had any problems with it. Another spyware site is SmilieCentral.com. I didn't realize that until the software on my work PC blocked it.
-------------------- Leashes?! We don't need no stinking leashes!! Posts: 4771 | From: The Berkeley of the East Coast: Montgomery County MD | Registered: Mar 2003
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posted
On a related note, I just uninstalled WeatherBug and with it, 179 instances of malware!
I don't know if it's related, but I don't think it's Mozilla. And now my Quickbooks is NFBSKed up like crazy. I can't save anything. I blame WeatherBug.
I called Quickbooks for help, which apparently costs $250!
Ana
-------------------- My great grandfather planted that tree! Posts: 4862 | From: Brooklyn | Registered: Sep 2000
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posted
Generally, any free software that is paying for ads on websites not their own is spyware. That's how they pay for the ads.
Weatherbug is only spyware by the most loose of definitions: it does download ads (much like Eudora, which no one calls spyware), but it does not install extra software onto your computer nor does it send any data back to their servers.
I'm guessing the 179 instances of malware came from an Ad-Aware scan. Ad-Aware inflates things by listing tracking cookies as spyware. They are, in a limited sense, but they do not affect how your computer operates. The big problem with spyware are programs, not cookies.
Either one of those instances is an actual malware program, or you're suffering from the computer user's fallacy, know official as post hoc ergo propter hoc.
Posts: 675 | From: Schenectady, NY | Registered: Nov 2003
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posted
So is AD-Aware a good program? My inlaws kept running one then it would tell you a trojan was there (which probably was), but you would have to pay to fix it. The other one...can't think whiney child in my ear...Spyblaster? I found that one hard to use...I like AD-Aware...the AOL one you still have to go and delete stuff, and it can't be a single thing, it has to be the entire scan from that day...apparently our d/l program is spyware itself, the new version has TONS, that's why we haven't upgraded...so no more disappearing b/c of AOL!
-------------------- "Fate is like a strange, unpopular resturant, filled with odd waiters who bring you things you never ask for and don't always like."-Lemony Snicket Posts: 1119 | From: Bronx, NY | Registered: Dec 2005
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posted
Ad-aware is pretty good. I use that and spybot S&D. Spywareblaster isn't a scanner, it's a blocker. Remember, you can use as many of them as you want, some catch things the others don't.
quote:Originally posted by Squishy0405: My inlaws kept running one then it would tell you a trojan was there (which probably was), but you would have to pay to fix it.
There are some unscrupulous sites out there that offer fake "spyware scanners" that when run will report a problem like a trojan and then make you pay to "fix" the "problem." If that's what they were running there probably wasn't really a trojan; it was just a scam to make them pay to fix a nonexistant problem.
In fact I once came across one called "ada-ware" (note the subtle difference in hyphen placement) while searching for the real Ad-aware. So be aware that there are fakes out there. The real one is from Lavasoft, where you can download the personal version for free.
-------------------- "Unseasonable is an odd word to begin with. It sounds like it's describing something that it's impossible to sprinkle pepper on." -- Nonny Posts: 5483 | From: Just south of Folsom Prison, CA | Registered: Jul 2002
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posted
Ad-Aware is one of the better tools. It's listed on Spyware Warrior as one of the five trustworthy spyware scanners. Spybot is also listed as a cleaning tool (it doesn't run in the background. Also, Ad-Aware's free version is just a cleaning tool; you have to buy the scanner).
The list at the link above will let you know what causes problems.
Posts: 675 | From: Schenectady, NY | Registered: Nov 2003
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posted
I use Ad-Aware and SpyBot. Both work well for me.
-------------------- "Cheating Hall Of Shame"-in honor of the dishonest. Every driver, owner and crew chief has a place in our Hall, which won't be moving to Daytona Beach anytime soon. Lone exception? Kyle Petty, who hasn't won a race since 1754. Posts: 545 | From: Pennsylvania | Registered: Dec 2004
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I remembered when this was a problem with many people.
back on topic: Besides it being a target towards spyware/adaware/etc. that many fear - PS So is FilePlanet Download Manager now with PUP - the third party helper is worthless to use.
Microsoft has developed their own buddy helper as well if you goto their site and find their service they provided.
-------------------- Joseph Z Posts: 1356 | From: Woodbridge, VA | Registered: Jul 2004
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"WHY SHOULD I BE CONCERNED? You could end up with unwanted porn on your computer. This would be especially bad at work. If porn is detected on your computer, you could be fired. Worse, if it was child porn, you could end up in prison. I know of one man this happened to. At the time, little was known about spyware in order for him to have that defense. Still, it could be hard to prove that the porn came from spyware that you did not download knowingly. "
That seems very unlikely, has anyone ever heard of this from another source ?
[ETA - emphasis mine]
Victoria J
-------------------- Post accompanied by maniacal laughter. Posts: 577 | From: London, UK | Registered: Sep 2005
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posted
Spyware could (theoretically) do that to your computer. However, I'm not very experienced with spyware as I've never gotten it and never plan to.
Posts: 95 | From: Gurnee, Illinois | Registered: Feb 2005
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posted
It just seems unlikely that you would want to distribute something highly illegal to those who didn't want it - and it isn't like the downloading-invisible-pictures-to-your-cache thing, the point of spyware that redirects to porn seems to be to make you pay for more of it. You would think this would backfire, and you'd just end up reported to the police very fast. Isn't a good criminal enterprise one that keeps very quiet about itself ?
It just sounded like a lame excuse to me.
But I never really understood the porn-redirect stuff anyway. Even if I did want to download porn I wouldn't want to do so from people who had already shown themselves to be so untrustworthy and hijacking my browser. Do people really get redirected by things like the cool web search, and then hand over credit card details to see more. I assume that like spam they only do it because it is profitable, but are people really THAT stupid ?
(Please don't disillusion me unnecessarily, I guess I know the answer to the last question ).
Victoria J
-------------------- Post accompanied by maniacal laughter. Posts: 577 | From: London, UK | Registered: Sep 2005
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quote:I don't get why spyware would do it though...
Because of the one idiot who falls for it. Spyware is, literally, free advertising, so it doesn't matter how many people you piss off - if only a minuscule percentage of those targetted responds, it worked.
-------------------- All along the untrodden paths of the future, I can see the footprints of an unseen hand. Posts: 6912 | From: Flanders | Registered: Jan 2004
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I was able to delete it and never had any problems with it.![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
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