🚀 go-pugleaf

I have a few things to say after Alan....

Alan Browne <alan.browne@videotron.ca> wrote in message
news:38CBD819.34959570@videotron.ca...
>
> Dear Zone Labs,
>
> As you know very well, your free product "Zone Alarm" has been
> enthusiastically
> installed on thousands of PC's to help protect people against
> unauthorized intrusion.
> This is more important everyday as the number of cable modem served PC's
> in North America
> is estimated to have passed the 2 million mark.  Add to this the number
> of DSL subscribers
> and the benefits of good firewalls "for the masses" cannot be
> underestimated.
>
> Unfortunately, there have been a variety of allegations and questions
> surrounding the
> "TrueVector" technology inherent to Zone Alarm.  This has raised
> suspicions that
> the product is somehow reporting back private information about the
> "user habits"
> of users who have installed this wonderful product.
>
> I am one of those who has been labeled "paranoid" by several Zone Alarm
> fans.
> I am not paranoid.  But I am concerned.  What I do on the internet is MY
> business,
> and nobody else's.  If I want to tell you what I do, I'll tell you,
> otherwise leave me
> alone.
>
> I am also a fan of Zone Alarm (and I've had the thing for only 18
> hours!), but the
> allegations, suspicions and questions beg for a simple resolution:
>
> Would Zone Labs please publicly certify in a letter on the Zone Labs
> website, and
> also in the various apropriate newsgroups that Zone Alarm does not
> report anything
> back to Zone Labs or any other company, agency, person, etc. on the
> contents of the
> users system that could in anyway be construed as private information,
> INCLUDING
> information related to the users "internet habits", contents of files
> unrelated to
> Zone Alarm, etc.  I'll leave it to you and (probably) your lawyers to
> define the exact wording.
> But get this: people want their privacy RESPECTED in all manners.
>
> In fact, if you were to make such a statement while simultaneously
> introducing a price
> for this LEAN, effective and professional product, I would be among the
> first in a line
> of thousands to purchase a licence.
>
> Best Regards,
> Alan Browne.
>

**************************************
from: http://www.zonelabs.com/truevector_overview.htm

"Monitor and log Internet activity on individual PCs, enabling your
application to implement panel metering, audience measurement and usage
reporting, stored in an object-oriented database."

<<<<Ah! there we are, there's the Iamdb.rdb file, which, I now realise, is
actually the Internet Access Monitor Database.... or is it? Perhap's it's
"Internet Audience Measurement Database", sounds like that's up Media
Metrix's street. Or maybe it's.... well, I'll be interested what they
eventually come up with to make it sound okay>>>>>

read the rest yourself at the URL given above, and what about this from:
 http://www.zonelabs.com/truevector_benefits.htm
"Developers can now create state-of-the-art, intelligent Internet
applications that monitor personal computer interaction with the Internet at
a granular level. They can use TrueVector to gather detailed data

<<<<what was that?? Just let me lift my ear-trumpet to my ear, didn't quite
catch that>>>>>

about a wide range of Internet activities, and react

<<<<<react??????>>>>>

according to very specific rules. TrueVector Technology gives developers the
power and precision they need."

<<<<the power and precision they need for *what*? This was not written for
US, the humble punter, this is for THEM, Zone Lab's partners in..... oh, the
word escapes me>>>>

and now, from: http://www.zonelabs.com/truevector_monitoring.htm
"Monitoring Internet Access
TrueVector Technology enables developers to create applications to monitor
and control Internet activity on individual PCs."

<<<<open sesame to your PC for "developers">>>>>>

*********************
I have since found another uninstalled TrueVector file, vsdata95.vxd, so add
that to the list. Some people say this is all just paranoia, other people
are concerned and feel they have been deceived. That's how I feel, the
latter. I see there is now a page up at the Zone Labs site explaining what
TrueVector files are put on your PC. They say: "If you want to double-check
the work of the uninstaller, or if you suspect you may have a broken
installation/uninstallation, this document contains the complete list of
files and registry entries to check. The uninstaller should remove all of
the ZoneAlarm program files.  If ZoneAlarm is your only client of the
TrueVector Internet monitoring service (this is usually the case, unless you
installed Internet Access Monitor), the uninstaller should remove the
TrueVector service files also."

Well, in my case it didn't. How about they get their pal Steve Gibson to
design a TrueVector removal application (he must be getting bored with the
Aureate removal tool, he's been working on it so long) rather than expect
you and I to go messing around in our registries and tracking down and
deleting locked DLLs and rdb files. Let's face it, if we're so stupid (and I
count myself here as well) as to place our trust in Zone Alarm in the first
place then we're really not up to fiddling around in our registries are we?

Do you want to know why I think supporters of Zone Alarm are aiming so much
flack and ridicule at those who are raising these questions of  TrueVector
technology? Because they are starting to realise what fools they've been,
but it just hasn't sunk in yet so they've gone into denial hoping some
"expert" (who is also a fool) will set them right and tell them they have
nothing to worry about. It's one thing to fall for it, it's another thing to
insist on staying dumb after the facts emerge and yet another corporate
busybody has been caught in the act of preparing their assault on our
privacy.

I personally am glad to be rid of this infestation called "TrueVector".
Others may choose to believe the company line about a "broken
uninstallation".  Well, in the next few days I'll wager we'll see what the
size of the problem is because I expect there will be quite a few attempts
at uninstallation, if only to see if it works as Zone Alarm says it should
do. Trust your own eyes not the sockpuppets you read here. But at least
you're all a *lot* better informed now eh?

Bill