Is AOL Free Software Spying?

One of the security groups voiced concerns about AOL’s recently released free download software and drew attention to some of the strange features of the new software.

AOL's free 9.0 client software was reviewed by StopBadware.org experts immediately after its release. However, after a detailed examination of the application, not very encouraging statements have been made, as the investigations revealed that users may encounter features that are common to malware when using AOL software.

According to StopBadware.org, although AOL 9.0 does not contain components that could cause more serious damage to the affected systems, there are still concerns. The most important of these is that the new version of the application installs add-ons that affect browsers and other software components on your computer without informing users. The real problem with the experts is that when you uninstall AOL 9.0, these add-ons are not removed. John Palfrey, director of the Berkman Center and a executive at StopBadware.org, said AOL 9.0 and similarly serious software should inform users that some of their components will not be removed from the system.

Andrew Weinstein, an AOL spokesman, acknowledged that there are bugs in the new software, but they are completely harmless from a security standpoint. The spokesman said the problems discovered by StopBadware.org will be fixed and the update is expected to be available next month.