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Spyware can be installed on a computer by a computer virus, by an e-mail trojan such as the United States FBI's Magic Lantern program, or may be hidden within the otherwise-innocuous installation a new program. |
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Spyware can be installed on a computer by a computer virus, by an e-mail trojan such as the United States FBI's Magic Lantern program, or may be hidden within the otherwise-innocuous installation a new program. Data collecting programs installed with the user's knowledge are not, properly speaking, spyware, if the user fully understands what data is being collected and with whom it is being shared. |
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Data collecting programs installed with the user's knowledge are not, properly speaking, spyware, if the user fully understands what data is being collected and with whom it is being shared. The HTTP cookie is a well-known mechanism for storing information about an Internet user on their own computer. However, the existence of cookies and their use is generally not concealed from users, who can also disallow access to cookie information. Nevertheless, to the extent that a Web site stores information in a cookie that the user is unaware of, the cookie mechanism could be considered a form of spyware. |
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The HTTP cookie is a well-known mechanism for storing information about an Internet user on their own computer, often used to assign webite visitors an individual identification number for subsequent recognition. However, the existence of cookies and their use is generally not concealed from users, who can also disallow access to cookie information. Nevertheless, to the extent that a Web site uses a cookie identifier to build a profile about the user, who does not know what information is added to this profile, the cookie mechanism could be considered a form of spyware. For example, a search engine website could assign a user an individual ID the first time he visits and store all search terms in a database with this ID as a key on all subsequent visits (until the cookie expires or is deleted). This data could be used to display advertisers, or could (legally or illegally) be transmitted to third parties. |
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