Google's toolbar is spyware even when you exit....

[polonus]

Google's toolbar is spyware:
With the advanced features enabled, Google's free toolbar for Explorer phones home with every page you surf, and yes, it reads your cookie too. Their privacy policy confesses this, but that's only because Alexa lost a class-action lawsuit when their toolbar did the same thing, and their privacy policy failed to explain this. Worse yet, Google's toolbar updates to new versions quietly, and without asking. This means that if you have the toolbar installed, Google essentially has complete access to your hard disk every time you connect to Google (which is many times a day). Most software vendors, and even Microsoft, ask if you'd like an updated version. But not Google. Any software that updates automatically presents a massive security risk. Google Toolbar Continues Tracking Browsing Even When Users "Disable" the Toolbar via "Manage Add-Ons"
The Google Toolbar keeps watching the user's surf habits, even when they have exited the program. The disabled toolbar does not only monitor the search queries of the user for Google, but also all search queries for any other search engine and send these data to Google's according to what Edelman found. The "Enhanced Features" toolbar option renders the full URL of every viewed page and also all search queries with competitive search engines. Edeman thought users could prevent this, but that does not appear to be the case. And no button to be found to disable "Enhanced Features" since these has been enabled and started,

polonus



http://www.benedelman.org/spyware/images/googletoolbar-jan10/disableaddons-video-012310.html

What should Google do according to Ben Edelman?
http://www.benedelman.org/news/012610-1.html

[Hermite15]

Hi Polonus,

ditched the Google toolbar years ago   have tried new versions off and on, basically a few minutes each time and ditched it again after I realized how it was getting more and more spyware, page ranking etc...there's no honest toolbar in this world I'm afraid  

edit: enhanced feature can be disabled from the "Google desktop" control panel...fortunately they haven't been able to provide GD for 64 bit OS (well it was so unstable they discontinued it forever)

[shae_32]

Ugh. No kidding. It's a pain in the butt to remove too.  I removed it off my mom's PC and had to go through the Registry and manually remove leftover junk. Yuckies. 

Glad I don't use that monster. 

[Chris Thomas]

Is there anyone who still use Google Toolbar?

I don't think so

[Hermite15]

just as a confirmation of what's been posted here:

Google Toolbar caught tracking users when 'disabled'

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/01/27/google_toolbar_caught_transmitting_data_when_disabled/

[Hermite15]

sounds like Google is getting worried about the rumors  there's atm a link on the main search page leading to this:
http://www.google.com/intl/en/privacy.html

[polonus]

Hi malware fighters,

This what they have on the toolbar there:
http://www.google.com/support/toolbar/?quick=privacy
They adhere to the official US Safe Harbor Privacy Regulations, whatever these may be...

polonus

[Omid Farhang]

Hi Polonus

it's an interesting topic, very interesting how a company like Google do this... , I posted same in my blog 3 days ago (Jan 26, 2009).

but, after all "Spy" and "Advert" etc... is not it needed for google to collect enough data for his Search Engine and it's own Database?!
I agree it should watch users activity when it's disabled, but when it's On by default, how it can be a "risk" if it collect our web usage data? personally I don't think if Google can be a risk for my life if it collect some data from my history and track how many times I visit which sites and what I did in those sites... I just think how Google can use this data to improve their service for a better search and web tools, that's the way I think.
I use Google Chrome, in my Google Account Web History is enabled, I use Google DNS and I'm happy with these! (also I use some other services such as Voice, Document, Similar Page, Feed-burner, Blogger, Reader, Gmail, Bookmarks, Health, Analytics, Sites, Calendar, App Engine, Contacts, Tasks, Alert, Transliteration, Translate and groups) and I've never felt if Google Spying can be a risk for me really! always I believe even if suddenly any of my personal data being sent to Google during their data collect they wont use it and I am safe because I trust Google!

after all, I don't use Google Toolbar! never found it useful! in IE it cause IE being unstable and also in Firefox it slow down FF. everything that Toolbar bring can be found in Firefox itself, for example search is right to address bar and shortcuts to Google Services is in Bookmarks bar of FF.

I know 99% of the users in this forum would hit me and keep kidding me because of the way I think! 

[polonus]

Hi Omid Farhang,

But you really do not realize how fundamental this is for using "any" browser on the Internet,
the User Agent is as identifiable as a unique cookie, every browser leeks 10,5 KB of User Agent Information and using a specific different browser agent (robot agent) and then if it is too typical it can identify you even better (Omid Farhang has been here....). There is tracking by scripts ,by bugs (0 pixel images), by Super Cookies that can restore normal deleted cookies etc. etc. Now recently by default geo-location has come to a lot of browsers. There is no place to hide really and the user of the Internet has become totally transparent. 3 times the info given away by the User Agent (so a combination user agent, unique cookie, bug, geo-location, analyzing script for instance) makes that you have lost all your privacy and they can tell in most cases that this is your unique URL, your browser, a person that sat behind such and such machine.
How come we arrived here. Everybody knows that functionality came first, and then again, and again and we had to wait a long, long time before anybody thought of privacy and then again a long time to consider the security of this completely open model,

polonus


A token on the wall, ghostery add-on sold to the firm it was meant against:
http://blog.betteradvertising.com/2010/01/19/better-advertising-acquires-ghostery/
So probably a very interesting Firefox add-on lost to the "enemy"....

D

[Shiw Liang]

About toolbars hehe I really hate toolbars after I've heard about that askbar/ask toolbar I think.
Toolbars uses too much space in my screen making me very angry while watching videos(animes)
-sigh-
By the way what are uses of toolbars?

[CharleyO]

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Spying   


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[YoKenny]

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Spying    


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Plus watching kids that stay up not doing their homework when they should.  

http://www.oldtimeradiofans.com/the_shadow/Shadow%20371226%2014%20the%20voice%20of%20death.mp3

[Shiw Liang]

so it is nothing special inputting it in our browser ">_>
By the way are there a software free for children's control against porn stuffs hehe my friend's uncle is said to be downloading these in his computer and my friend is going totally crazy about that so...a bit of suggestion needed