Spyware Information: Alexa Toolbar
This is a Browser Helper Object (BHO). BHO's connect to Internet Explorer while it's running, and share information. BHO's were originally designed to allow Internet Explorer to handle new types of data and to offer new features not originally designed into the product (like search toolbars, for example). But because BHO's have access to all the information about the web sites that you visit (and because BHO's run on your computer and could potentially do anything they want), they have been used by advertising companies and others to track you online.
- Size: 1,418,240 bytes
- Threat level: Low (more info...)
- Detections: 1,482 this month: 1
- Author: Alexa
- Appeared: May, 2000
Research
- Method of infection: The Alexa toolbar can be downloaded from Alexa.com. It is not known to be distributed with free applications.
- Advertising: No.
- Browser degradation: The Alexa Toolbar is loaded with each instance of Internet Explorer. This can cause some slowness in starting IE on slower computers.
- Privacy issues: Alexa reports all the sites you visit back to its website. These statistics do not carry your specific identity, but they do carry an id number that allows Alexa to build a history of your surfing. The aggregate data of all web surfers' data is sold on Alexa.com, but not individuals' data.
- Privacy policy: Online at http://pages.alexa.com/help/privacy.html.
- Security issues: None known.
- Stability issues: None known.
Spyware Detection Stats
- Spyware Fingerprints: 91,859
- Detections: 6,792,646
- Detections this Month: 793
Spyware Search
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