AOL is Dissed Again!

AOL can’t seem to catch a break. (Ain’t it great?!?!) They were labelled as official “badware” by an independent group – the StopBadware.org coalition.

AOL 9.0 Slapped with ‘Badware’ Label

“The high-powered StopBadware.org coalition has slapped a ‘badware’ label on the free version of the AOL 9.0 software program. The group, which is funded by Google, Lenovo Group and Sun Microsystems, accused AOL of installing additional software without telling the user; adding components to the browser and taskbar without disclosure; automatically updating software without user consent; and making the AOL 9.0 software difficult to fully uninstall. ‘We currently recommend that users do not install the version of AOL software that we tested,’ according to a report released Aug. 28 by StopBadware.org. The recommendation is a serious blow to AOL, which is already struggling with user privacy problems related to the recent disclosure of search data of more than 650,000 users. The report said the AOL 9.0 software comes bundled with a number of additional applications, including RealNetworks’ RealPlayer, Apple Computer’s QuickTime, AOL You’ve Got Pictures Screensaver, Pure Networks’ Port Magic, and Viewpoint Media Player.”

Go get ’em, guys!