BadWareBusters.org is a
platform for the further development of StopBadware’s strategy to bring together people, organizations, and data in new ways to fight back against badware. The site already offers a pretty neat user reputation and message rating system, but we plan to build on this to provide tools that allow the community to express its collective voice. We want to learn from our users, so that StopBadware’s research and advocacy activities can be as effective and current as possible.
In addition to helping users with badware problems on their computers, the BadwareBusters community has helped webmasters of sites that have been hacked to distribute badware.
The project comes from StopBadware.org and Consumer Reports WebWatch.
Note: StopBadware is a project of the Berkman Center, where I'm a fellow.
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The “mal” in malware already means “bad”.
Do we really need to add “badware” to the mix of “malware”, “spyware”, “trojans”, etc.?
Chill out, Zuzu. They’re trying to reach users who are dumb enough to install kitten screen savers they find on random sites on the internet. You can’t expect them to know Latin!
@2 But they can watch House, ER, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, and General Hospital and know that a malignant tumor is bad? I’m with Zuzu, we don’t need another (redundant) term for harmful software.
What is Badware?
The latter is very concerning but some are just annoyances. People should be allowed to opt out of installing yet another IE toolbar. There are people who like Weatherbug. Yes, I know, it’s odd but apparently true.
You haven’t lived until you’ve tried to help fix the PC of a friend of a friend who’s IE toolbar is an inch thick, their desktop littered with links to crapware and their tool tray stuffed with still more junk. It’s a nightmare ah tells ya.
Even without getting into keeping Windows as a virtual machine, since it inevitably degrades over time — like how fish spoils — a fresh reinstall of WinXP SP3 with Kaspersky and Firefox is a world of difference in protecting people from their own ignorance.
Running an SPI firewall on their Internet uplink is also a major improvement. Anything that runs DD-WRT will likely suffice.
Oh, and setting their DNS resolution to OpenDNS.
OpenDNS looked interesting up until I found out it overrode the “No such page” codes — then straight to the ‘badware’ trash with it.
The debate of adding the term “badware” to the lexicon aside, they don’t really list anything. Yeah, you can search for a specific website, and they have a whole 27 applications/websites listed in their “internet users” section (Realplayer included LOL), but you can’t just look at their entire list. Why not let users browse their database?
I had a bad experience with a trojan just a week ago, but when I looked around for help, I found a surprising lack of good information.
Symantec has stopped distributing free threat-specific removal tools, it seems. Most of the protection programs out there are commercial or shareware, some of them rapaciously so. (Like Symantec’s, which threatens fire and brimstone if one tries to uninstall their product.) There is not a single free or open source program I could find that will do full real-time threat protection.
Google, a partner of the StopBadware effort, distributes two in Google Pack: Spyware Doctor and a Norton (that is, Symantec) tool. Both require that the user “upgrade” to a paid product before they will deign to provide full protection. And doing a Google search for advice on manual removal is nearly a hopeless cause, so loaded with SEO spam for shareware removal tools are those search terms.
If BadWareBusters really wants to do something about the scourge of malware, they should start by providing users with good open source tools and practical protection and removal information.
Hi – I’m a BadwareBuster,
BadwareBusters strive to do exactly what you’re looking for John. But not exactly as you want it done.
I agree with the notion that another term for malware isn’t really a good idea, but badware covers so much more than just the malicious software that you all hate so much.
Who would think that security software downloaded from a bank would be bad? – I do, expecially if it involves a root kit that can’t be uninstalled. – Now that isn’t covered by the malware definitions you’ve listed here so far.
But at badwarebusters we do much more. With an active community we help everyone from webmasters with sites infected to users that have been infected by anything strange. We try to identify and help getting rid of the problem and use the tools available. We’re not planning on creating yet another tool or removal software – there’s plenty of that available – but we’re helping to use the resources that are already present.
Everyone is invited to join us, just for comments, or seeking help and advice. Having Stopbadware and Comunity Report Web Watch as our “mentors” will help us, and you, make the concerns of everyone part of the solution that you’re seeking.