ISP Based Contextual Advertising Page 3

ISP Based Contextual Advertising Page 3
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Grail Knight @ 20th Mar 02:16PM:
Re: Possible Regulation?

quote:
Where are the indignant people who object strenuously when a website sets a tracking cookie? Where is the outrage that was caused by the Sony rootkit or Windows validation? And the list goes on.

Sleeping.

Seriously though this is one of those events that requires users to do more then complain in a form about something. Letter writing, fire of an email of the users displeasure stating factual information about why this should not be allowed to happen to their political reps etc... This one actually requires users to do some legwork but unless there is an incentive for the ISPs not to allow this it will happen. It is all about money.

quote:
What I do care about is that my information is shared with a third party for profit without my knowledge which has already happened.

Same here yet what controls are in place to stop the more obvious routes of personal loss/trade/sold/stolen/shoddy handling etc...?

Now if all of the ISPs jump on this bandwagon the usual threats by users to switch ISPs just will not cut it and I doubt that the majority of online users are going to hang up their router/modem unless the ISPs put a halt to the practice if and when it happens on a wide scale basis.

Edit* Added more info.
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anon @ 20th Mar 02:35PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

Wow, what people will do to "enhance my viewing experience". Wow, "targeted advertising". Now I will see all blow-up doll ads when I go to disney.com. Wow, I can't wait.
This sounds very similar to what Homeland Security is doing now. Maybe that's where they got the idea from.

:D
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SUMware @ 20th Mar 03:27PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

Here's another:

Project Rialto
A Stealth Company Created by Alcatel-Lucent

Sr. Engineer – Data Mining and Modeling – Mountain View, CA [excerpted]:

We are designing high-performance algorithms and developing reliable, fault-tolerant and scalable real-time systems that can handle massive volume of data for in-depth analysis of user behavior to enable targeted advertising.

Essential Job Functions
- Develop high-performance algorithms for precision targeting
- Research and investigate academic and industrial data mining, machine learning and modeling techniques to apply to our specific business case

Requirements
- Ph.D. in computer science or related
- 3+ years industry experience in data mining and machine learning.
- Internet advertisement technology and distributed computing related experience highly desirable.

OZO @ 20th Mar 05:17PM:
It's time to do something...

There should be a law that prohibits gathering behavioural information on users by ISP or any others entity between user's computer and first Internet router.

It's important to distinguish that it's not about Google, or Yahoo, or Phorm, or any company that may change its name or its tactics later on. It's about protection of first hop from tracking and/or mangling communication by any party.

If it will not be done soon - the race for a buck will make a lot of nasties possible, including targeted advertisements in every received mail, web page, video stream, etc. It's time to get serious about it and fix it or soon it will be too late and we'll be deeply sorry about that all...
--
Keep it simple, it'll become complex by itself...
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The Snowman @ 20th Mar 05:32PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

Really this sort of thing should not come as a surprise......the ad vendors have been lossing revenue and will go to any resource to re-gain that revenue.

There are several ways to deal with this issue.....none of which the average person would be obviously willing to do. An how can they be faulted ? When every wannabe security expert (yeah right) is out there pushing false information or infected software.
There remains a rare few trustworthy vendors these days.......and that confuses the hell out of joe doe public.

Close the door on any ISP that uses this exploit.....find a ISP that does not....that may get their attention.
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SUMware @ 20th Mar 06:42PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

I was just heading over to »www.phorm.com/videos/ to watch some vids from the Phorm CEO and received the above alert from Dephormation. Heh!

Just Basics @ 20th Mar 08:56PM:
Net Neutrality

This is not the same issue but it easily could be in the future:

»https://secure.freepress.net/site/Advoca···n&id=241

The link will send you to a petition with a form that can be amended to include questionable, and possibly illegal, behavior by your ISP.

I have filled it out and surprisingly received a reply from my representative:

"Thank you for visiting my website and I appreciate receiving your email. Your thoughts and opinions are important to me and I look forward to mailing you a formal reply soon.

Sincerely,
Rep. Thelma Drake"

Will this do any good? Who knows - but it is at least worth a shot and doesn't take very long.

You may also want to review the following page:
»www.savetheinternet.com/blog/200···swallow/

From the article - bolding mine:

"An open Internet looks quite different. It starts with Net Neutrality, which guarantees a level playing field and gives the little guy the same chance as Google to come up with the next big thing. (Remember, it wasn’t Comcast or AT&T that invented YouTube, blogs, eBay or almost anything else that makes the internet so great.) On an open Internet, a provider’s only job is to move data — not degrade, inspect or censor content."
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The Snowman @ 20th Mar 09:13PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

CREDIT DUE:

»p10.hostingprod.com/@spyblog.org···gal.html

____________________________________________________________

To Add To Hosts File

# Phorm

127.0.0.1 a.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 b.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 c.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 bt.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 m01.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 m02.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 ns1.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 ns2.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 www.webwise.com
127.0.0.1 webwise.com

127.0.0.1 a.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 b.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 c.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 bt.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 m01.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 m02.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 ns1.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 ns2.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 www.webwise.net
127.0.0.1 webwise.net

127.0.0.1 a.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 b.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 c.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 bt.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 m01.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 m02.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 ns1.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 ns2.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 www.webwise.org
127.0.0.1 webwise.org

127.0.0.1 a.oix.net
127.0.0.1 b.oix.net
127.0.0.1 c.oix.net
127.0.0.1 m01.oix.net
127.0.0.1 m02.oix.net
127.0.0.1 ns1.oix.net
127.0.0.1 ns2.oix.net
127.0.0.1 www.oix.net
127.0.0.1 oix.net

127.0.0.1 a.oix.com
127.0.0.1 b.oix.com
127.0.0.1 c.oix.com
127.0.0.1 m01.oix.com
127.0.0.1 m02.oix.com
127.0.0.1 ns1.oix.com
127.0.0.1 ns2.oix.com
127.0.0.1 www.oix.com
127.0.0.1 oix.com

____________________________________________________________

Neither Blocking the cookies nor the DNS lookups in your hosts file will actually prevent the Phorm man-in-the-middle-attack hardware from illegally snooping on your electronic communications, it will just stop you getting the targeted adverts

____________________________________________________________

CREDIT DUE:

»p10.hostingprod.com/@spyblog.org···gal.html

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anon @ 20th Mar 09:34PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

Phorm, before it renamed itself, was the notorious spyware firm 121Media.
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anon @ 20th Mar 09:42PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

ZDnet found a link between Phorm/121Media and a company which distributed a rootkit.

Apropos uses highly sophisticated stealth techniques to avoid detection. The spyware collects a user’s browsing habits and system information and sends it back to the ContextPlus servers. Targeted pop-up advertisements are displayed while browsing the web.

Apropos contains a kernel-mode rootkit that allows it to hide files, directories, registry keys and processes. The rootkit is implemented by a kernel-mode driver which starts automatically early in the boot process. When the files and registry keys have been hidden, no user-mode process is allowed to access them.

The folks behind ContextPlus, Apropos and PeopleOnPage evidently did not want to be known and there’s little information about them to be found on the internet. The ContextPlus.com domain registration info shows a name and address in Poland. Interestingly enough, the domain history on 2-28-2005 shows the name Apropos with an address and phone number in Kirkland, Washington. PeopleOnPage.com shows an address in Poland with the name Kent Ertugrul . A Google search for Kent Ertugrul brings up a hit showing him as director and CEO of 121 Media, which is a contextual advertising company according to the website. “
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anon @ 20th Mar 09:59PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

About My Last Post:

CREDIT DUE:

»addiator.blogspot.com/
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The Snowman @ 20th Mar 10:13PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

Well I hope my post as snowguynotlogin has proven informational to some readers.
This is where I jump off now.....I don't do this stuff any longer. Good Luck to everyone.
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Mele20 @ 27th Mar 02:15AM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

"The Guardian has pulled out of its targeted advertising deal with Phorm, following a public outcry over plans for the UK's three largest ISPs to report the browsing habits of their customers in exchange for a cut of revenues...

In an email to a concerned reader, advertising manager Simon Kilby revealed the retreat:

It is true that we have had conversations with them [Phorm] regarding their services but we have concluded at this time that we do not want to be part of the network. Our decision was in no small part down to the conversations we had internally about how this product sits with the values of our company."

(Bolding is mine).
»www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/26···m_uturn/
--
"The same ferocity that our founders devoted to protect the freedom and independence of the press is now appropriate for our defense of the freedom of the internet. The stakes are the same: the survival of our Republic". Al Gore, The Assault on Reason
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ilago @ 27th Mar 10:17PM:
Re: ISP Based Contextual Advertising

quote:
"The Guardian has pulled out of its targeted advertising deal with Phorm, following a public outcry over plans for the UK's three largest ISPs to report the browsing habits of their customers in exchange for a cut of revenues...

I'm sure the Guardian made that decision on the basis of the responses they were receiving from their readers.

The only way that I can see to raise concerns about this level of subversion is to keep both ISPs and Advertisers advised that users object. Where ISPs have monopolies, and many do in some areas, then I think the consumers have to seriously complain.

Without pressure from the public, who are the product in this case, legislators and advertisers aren't ever going to see the moral issues until it is their confidential data splashing in the headlines.

As a user I am not a product to be bought and sold by vested interests.
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