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WYDEN TESTIFIES ON SPYWARE, ADWARE
AT COMMERCE COMMITTEE HEARING
Senator has long led efforts to combat
intrusive, consumer-unfriendly computer software
May 11, 2005
Washington, DC – U.S.
Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), one of Congress’ leading advocates
of responsible and consumer-friendly technology growth, today
testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science
and Transportation about invasive computer software known as spyware
and adware. Wyden also outlined in his testimony principles to
guide any Federal legislative efforts to stop spyware that are
reflected in legislation he introduced earlier this year. Wyden’s
bipartisan SPYBLOCK (Software Principles Yielding Better Levels
of Consumer Knowledge) Act would prohibit the installation of
software on a computer without the owner’s notice and consent.
Wyden introduced the legislation in March along with U.S. Senator
Conrad Burns (R- Mont.), who also chaired today’s hearing.
Senator Wyden’s prepared
testimony follows:
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden
Prepared Testimony before the Senate Committee
on Commerce, Science and Transportation
Hearing on Spyware
Mr. Chairman and Members of
the Committee, I welcome the opportunity to share with you my
thoughts on the twin cyber-plagues of spyware and its brother,
unwanted adware. Millions of consumers and businesses across the
country and the world have been in a virtual tug-of-war with spyware
over who controls their computers, laptops and web-enabled devices.
At the present time and in the absence of a strong legislative
solution, consumers and businesses lose ground daily to this software
scourge.
This committee has been in the
forefront of efforts to write the rules of the new economy, and
I regret not being able to roll up my sleeves with you on the
Commerce Committee to tackle this cyber menace, but I commit to
working with you in a bipartisan way to help however I may. I
commend you for taking up this issue again, and urge swift action
to eliminate these cyber-plagues and restore to consumers and
businesses the control they want over their Internet activities.
How big is the problem? Last
fall, America Online and the National Cybersecurity Alliance found
that 80 percent of those surveyed reported spyware or adware on
their computers.
Much of the spyware and unwanted
adware travels as imposters via legitimate Internet advertising.
Companies enter into advertising arrangements with legitimate
Internet ad buyers who, in turn, go to advertising networks that
can use thousands or as many as 70,000 affiliates, some of which
are not so legitimate. It is among this array of affiliates, who
are paid by the click and therefore have an incentive to rack
up the largest number of clicks, where much of the rogue software
originates. As described by the Los Angeles Times this Monday,
“If an affiliate slips a deceptive piece of software into
someone’s personal computer and persuades the owner to buy
something, the transaction could be passed through three or four
businesses – each taking a cut – before the affiliate
network hands off the customer to the merchant.”
It should be no surprise then
that the twin cyber-plague reached epidemic proportions last year
because in 2004, the Interactive Advertising Bureau found spending
on Internet ads rose more than 30 percent to almost $9.6 billion.
How does it work? These two
cyber rogues wreak havoc through practices that surreptitiously
place spyware and other unwanted software on consumers’
computers. These are called “drive-by downloads.”
By doing such seemingly innocent things as downloading software,
like a screensaver or file-trading program, the user unknowingly
imports into the computer software that can follow the user from
web page to web page, gathering data on the user’s habits
or showing hundreds of pop-up ads. The key point is that the consumer
does not want the software, does not know the software is there,
and does not know what the software is doing.
What can be done to stop it?
A few states have moved or are moving to try to curb the practice,
I believe the inherently interstate nature of the Internet calls
for a national solution. There are a few key guideposts that should
direct any federal legislative effort.
- First, each computer user
should know and have control over what software resides on his
or her computer. That means drive-by downloads should be banned.
- Second, jumping on a computer
should not expose the user to a Coney Island-full of hucksters,
where they are tricked into installing software they don’t
want or when they can’t identify the source of the ads.
Consumers should be informed about who is providing the software
and what it will do. Consumers should know if software will track
their browsing behavior in order to serve pop-up ads.
- Third, no software should
allow any ad or information collected at one website to travel
with the user to another website. When a user leaves a website
that should be the end of the road for ads affiliated with that
website.
- Fourth, consumers need to
be able to remove or disable any software they don’t want
so that when software is installed on a computer, it is not an
irreversible act.
- Fifth, the full weight of
law enforcement should be thrown against spyware and unwanted
adware, meaning that the Federal Trade Commission as well as state
attorneys general should be able to bring action.
- Finally, companies that act
in good faith to help consumers get rid of the twin cyber-plagues
should be given protection from liability. They should not be
scared out of business by the threat of lawsuits from those whose
software gets removed.
These principles are reflected
in a bill that Senator Burns and I sponsored in the last Congress
and that we reintroduced in March, with Senators Boxer and Bill
Nelson. Our legislation, S. 687, got strong support from this
committee last year, it enjoys support among some key industry
players and I offer it up as one way to tackle this problem. I
understand the House has begun to move legislation, and I know
the members of this committee are anxious to get to work on this
legislation. I thank the committee for the chance to testify.
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