Spyware News and Alert
Several universities have reported network traffic to an online company named Marketscore.com. This company asks consumers to register into its commercial program and, in return, promises faster Internet connection speeds, free prizes and free email anti-virus scanning. The commercial program inspects registrant Internet traffic prior to delivery to the intended Internet destination. Thus, your Internet behavior and possibly confidential information is available to a commercial organization. While only non-personal information is reportedly sold to third-party organizations, you should be aware that personal information, such as name, login accounts, passwords and financial account information, is intercepted and could be reviewed by an unauthorized party. While this type of service is not exactly spyware, as it requires formal registration and a privacy statement is available, users are strongly advised to consider the risk of identity theft before completing enrollment.