Spyware Detail

Summary

WebHancer provides a traffic measurement service that uses a client agent that is installed on user machines, gathering detailed data about sites visited, their performance and, most important, what the user actually does while there. WebHancer is reportedly on ten million user desktops in 192 countries, placed there by partners such as companies that provide free software on the Web. Download an MP3 player, and you may be offered a chance to play in the measurement game by also loading the WebHancer agent. This model is opt-in, with an explicit license agreement. WebHancer claims that its agent doesn't gather any personal information about end users. Installation is transparent, but incorrect removal procedures will destroy your Internet connection.

Alias

->license.txt[F-Prot]
Adware/Xupiter[Panda]
Customer Companion
Webhancer Customer Companion

Vendor Description

WebHancer provides a traffic measurement service that uses a client agent that is installed on user machines, gathering detailed data about sites visited, their performance and, most important, what the user actually does while there.

WebHancer is reportedly on ten million user desktops in 192 countries, placed there by partners such as companies that provide free software on the Web. Download an MP3 player, and you may be offered a chance to play in the measurement game by also loading the WebHancer agent.

This model is opt-in, with an explicit license agreement. WebHancer claims that its agent doesn't gather any personal information about end users.

Installation is transparent, but incorrect removal procedures will destroy your Internet connection.

According to the WebHancer website, Webhancer: "WebHancer Customer Companion resides on the end-user's computer, where it transparently monitors Internet performance. WebHancer Customer Companion measures overall network/site delay and the performance times experienced by actual end-users."

Category

Browser Helper Object:  (BHO). A component that Internet Explorer will load whenever it starts, shares IE's memory context, can perform any action on the available windows and modules. A BHO can detect events, create windows to display additional information on a viewed page, monitor messages and actions. Microsoft calls it "a spy we send to infiltrate the browser's land." BHOs are not stopped by personal firewalls, because they are seen by the firewall as your browser itself. Some exploits of this technology search all pages you view in IE and replace banner advertisements with other ads. Some monitor and report on your actions. Some change your home page.

Spyware:  Any product that employs a user's Internet connection in the background without their knowledge, and gathers/transmits info on the user or their behavior. Many spyware products will collect referrer info (information from your web browser which reveals what URL you linked from), your IP address (a number that is used by computers on the network to identify your computer), system information (such as time of visit, type of browser used, the operating system and platform, and CPU speed.) Spyware products sometimes wrap other commercial products, and are introduced to machines when those commercial products are installed. See also Adware.

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