Download dot com's trojan screensavers

commentary from ClifNotes, Oct 2006, permalink

I love autumn. I especially enjoy the colorful autumn leaves. So, what's wrong with a beautiful autumn themes screensaver? Nothing, unless you download it from Download.com.

At the very end of September, I received a Download Dispatch newsletter from Download dot com and I saw a couple of free screensavers in the listings that looked very nice.

If you find these don't even download them. They may be Adware/Malware. I personally downloaded both of them and they both set off alarms in my anti-virus program. I'm not alone. There were dozens of user reviews on each and they nearly all said the same thing. To be truthful, I was never able to confirm these were bad, but sometime after this, Download.com removed one of them from their site.

Each of those screensavers has been downloaded over 40,000 times by unsuspecting users. What is Download dot com doing? Do they even notice the user reviews? I've written to their support people about this. No response yet.

If the questionable downloads weren't bad enough, when you get to the download screen they offer you "sponsored links" to three more nasty places to pick up more adware to assist in destroying your PC's stability.

(screenshot and links to SiteAdvisor's rating on each link)

click image to expand
Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us
SiteAdvisor rating for ScreenSaver.com
SiteAdvisor rating for EasyScreenSaver.com
SiteAdvisor rating for ScreenSaverInsanity.com

Here is an excerpt from the newsletter that started all this.

September 29, 2006

Whether you call it autumn or fall, the picturesque season of bold colors and falling leaves is upon those of us in the Northern hemisphere. So, we've put together a collection of screensavers to help you celebrate the beginning of the season. From falling leaves and auburn forests to cute woodland creatures, it's easy to get images of autumn on your desktop. Happy downloading!

3. Colors of Autumn Screensaver 3
Make autumn come alive with 60 stunning images displaying the full breadth of fall colors.
License: Free 29,675

4. Gorgeous Fall Foliage Screensaver
This free autumn screensaver puts picturesque seasonal colors on your desktop.
License: Free 25,069

The free Colors of Autumn Screensaver by Scenic Reflections displays 60 beautiful and colorful images of the fall season. See and experience the awe of autumn right on your computer. We know you're gonna just fall in love with this free screensaver. This free autumn screensaver also features three beautiful, full-length, CD-quality musical compositions. All Scenic Reflections Screensavers include desktop wallpaper support so you can make any of the screensaver images your desktop wallpaper, too.

click image to expand
Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

About the screensaver author's website (nasty place)
http://www.siteadvisor.com/sites/scenicreflections.com

What lesson can we learn from my mishap?

  1. Always be suspicious of free screensavers. They are a favorite vector of malware profiteers for spreading their poisons.
  2. Don't even think about downloading a screensaver at a website that doesn't pass SiteAdvisor's tests. And even though Download dot com's results are good, they can't be trusted either.
  3. Make sure your anti-virus programs are up to date and immediately scan any new downloads.

Update Oct 18, 2006: An old friend of mine that I met at TeMerc forums, wrote in to tell me he had posted a notice on CNET forums and now Download dot com has removed the download above marked #4. There was also some discussion there that suggested the downloads may not have been infected and that it was a false alert from AVG/ewido security software. Even if they aren't infected, I still will not accept any excuse for them ignoring so many user reviews.

Thank you JohnInCal, for your help at CNET.


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