Lavasoft

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Adaware
Company type Private limited company
Founded Germany (1999)
Headquarters Montreal, Quebec, Canada
ProductsAdaware antivirus
Lavasoft Digital Lock
Lavasoft File Shredder
Ad-Aware Web Companion
Lavasoft Privacy Toolbox
Parent Avanquest (Claranova) [1] [2]
Website www.adaware.com

Adaware, formerly known as Lavasoft, [3] is a software development company that produces spyware and malware detection software, [4] including Adaware. It operates as a subsidiary of Avanquest, a division of Claranova. [2]

Contents

The company offers products Adaware Antivirus, Adaware Protect, Adaware Safe Browser, Adaware Privacy, Adaware AdBlock, Adaware PC Cleaner and Adaware Driver Manager.[ citation needed ]

Adaware's headquarters are in Montreal, Canada, having previously been located in Gothenburg, Sweden since 2002. Nicolas Stark and Ann-Christine Åkerlund established the company in Germany in 1999 with its flagship Adaware antivirus product. In 2011, Adware was acquired by the Solaria Fund, [5] a private equity fund front for entrepreneurs Daniel Assouline and Michael Dadoun, who have been accused [6] of selling software that is available for free, including Adaware antivirus prior to acquiring the company itself.

Adaware antivirus

Adaware antivirus
Developer(s) Adaware
Initial release1999;25 years ago (1999)
Stable release
12.4.930.11587 [7] / June 27, 2018;5 years ago (2018-06-27)
Written in C++, Visual Basic .NET
Operating system Microsoft Windows
Available in Multilingual [8]
Type Antivirus software, Adware, Spyware
License Proprietary, Freeware
Website www.adaware.com

An anti-spyware and anti-virus software program, Adaware Antivirus, according to its developer, supposedly detects and removes malware, spyware and adware, computer viruses, dialers, Trojans, bots, rootkits, data miners,[ citation needed ], parasites, browser hijackers and tracking components. [9] Adaware Web Companion, a component of the Adaware antivirus, is frequently packaged alongside potentially unwanted programs. Adaware accomplishes this by striking deals with malware operators and site owners to distribute its software in exchange for money. Adaware Web Companion is known to collect user data and send it back to remote servers.

History

Adaware antivirus was originally developed, as Ad-Aware, in 1999 to highlight web beacons inside of Internet Explorer.[ citation needed ] On many websites, users would see a tiny pixelated square next to each web beacon, warning the user that the computer's IP address and other non-essential information was being tracked by this website. Over time, Ad-Aware added the ability to block those beacons, or ads.

In the 2008 Edition, Lavasoft bundled Ad-Aware Pro and Plus for the first time with an antivirus scanner, [10] which used the Avira engine [11] and this arrangement continued for a few years. [12] Starting with Ad-Aware version 10, the Bitdefender antivirus engine was used instead. [13] [14] [15]

Reliability

According to PC World Magazine, an older version of Ad-Aware, the Anniversary Edition, could locate only 83.6% of malware in a comparative test carried out by the security firm AV-TEST. [16] However, it stated that no such tests have been run on the newest version. Neil J. Rubenking at PCMag performed a lab test on version 8.3, where Ad-Aware scored 9.2 points, beating the previous top score of 9.1. [17]

Market share

In July 2013, Adaware Antivirus Free was listed as having been downloaded a total of 450 million times from the Lavasoft site, including over 387 million times from Download.com as of December 2014. [18] According to OPSWAT, in January 2015, Ad-Aware had less than 1% of market share globally. [19] Paid versions of the product are being competed from low-cost or free products, such as Microsoft Security Essentials. [16]

Controversies

The company was acquired in January 2011, as Lavasoft, by the Solaria Fund, a private equity fund, [5] front for Daniel Assouline and Michael Dadoun, key people of UpClick and Interactive Brands. [20] SC Magazine reported that Lavasoft had been acquired by the same entrepreneurs who have been accused of selling software that is available for free to unwitting users under the guise of premium support, [21] including the free version of Lavasoft's security program prior to acquiring the company itself. [6] Security consultant Dancho Danchev has documented this controversy. [22]

Additionally, Danchev has reported in 2013 that Lavasoft was used to hide hard-to-uninstall programs into third-party software to trick the users in installing them, like in the K-Lite Codec Pack, and the Lavasoft Web Companion changed your browser without the user's permission. Although the company shields itself behind the complete legality[ clarification needed ] of bundled software and claims that their software is only used to fight malware, there are users who have branded their products as malware. [23]

In February 2015, it was reported by CERT Coordination Center, that a new security feature in Ad-Aware Web Companion was implemented with Komodia SSL Digestor, one of Komodia's public SDKs, the company behind the Superfish security incident in Lenovo machines. [24] [25] [26]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spybot – Search & Destroy</span> Spyware removal software

Spybot – Search & Destroy (S&D) is a spyware and adware removal computer program compatible with Microsoft Windows. Dating back to the first Adwares in 2000, Spybot scans the computer hard disk and/or RAM for malicious software.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AVG AntiVirus</span> Antivirus computer program

AVG AntiVirus is a line of antivirus software developed by AVG Technologies, a subsidiary of Avast, a part of Gen Digital. It is available for Windows, macOS and Android.

Norton AntiVirus is an anti-virus or anti-malware software product founded by Peter Norton, developed and distributed by Symantec since 1990 as part of its Norton family of computer security products. It uses signatures and heuristics to identify viruses. Other features included in it are e-mail spam filtering and phishing protection.

Outpost Firewall Pro is a discontinued personal firewall developed by Agnitum.

ewido Networks

Ewido Networks was a digital data security software company based in Germany known for creating Ewido Anti-Spyware. Ewido Anti-Spyware was software used to remove malware such as spyware, trojan horses, adware, dialers, and worms.

Rogue security software is a form of malicious software and internet fraud that misleads users into believing there is a virus on their computer and aims to convince them to pay for a fake malware removal tool that actually installs malware on their computer. It is a form of scareware that manipulates users through fear, and a form of ransomware. Rogue security software has been a serious security threat in desktop computing since 2008. An early example that gained infamy was SpySheriff and its clones, such as Nava Shield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HitmanPro</span> Anti-malware computer program

HitmanPro is a portable antimalware program, which aims to detect and remove malicious files and registry entries related to rootkits, trojans, viruses, worms, spyware, adware, rogue antivirus programs, ransomware, and other malware from infected computers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PC Tools (company)</span> Australian software company

PC Tools, formerly known as WinGuides.com, was a software company acquired by Symantec in 2008; the new owner eventually discontinued the PC Tools name. Company headquarters were in Australia, with offices in Luxembourg, the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland and Ukraine. The company had previously developed and distributed security and optimization software for the Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows platforms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AVG Technologies</span> Brand of cybersecurity, privacy, performance and utility applications

AVG Technologies is a brand of cybersecurity, privacy, performance and utility software applications for desktop computers and mobile devices developed by Avast, a part of Gen Digital. AVG was a cybersecurity software company founded in 1991 and it merged into Avast following an acquisition in 2017. It typically offers freeware, earning revenues from advertisers and from users that upgrade to paid versions for access to more features.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malwarebytes (software)</span> Anti-malware software

Malwarebytes is anti-malware software for Microsoft Windows, macOS, ChromeOS, Android, and iOS that finds and removes malware. Made by Malwarebytes Corporation, it was first released in January 2006. This is available in a free version, which scans for and removes malware when started manually, and a paid version, which additionally provides scheduled scans, real-time protection and a flash-memory scanner.

SUPERAntiSpyware is a software application which can detect and remove spyware, adware, trojan horses, rogue security software, computer worms, rootkits, parasites and other potentially harmful software applications. Although it can detect various types of malware, SUPERAntiSpyware is not designed to replace antivirus software.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comodo Internet Security</span> Internet security software suite

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malwarebytes</span> Internet security company

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prevx</span>

Prevx is a discontinued anti-malware utility. There are separate real-time and on-demand versions. It can remove low-risk adware for free, but the user has to purchase and enter a license key if it is more serious. Scanning can take anywhere from less than two minutes to five minutes.

Multiscanning is running multiple anti-malware or antivirus engines concurrently. Traditionally, only a single engine can actively scan a system at a given time. Using multiple engines simultaneously can result in conflicts that lead to system freezes and application failures. However, a number of security applications and application suites have optimized multiple engines to work together.

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Superfish was an advertising company that developed various advertising-supported software products based on a visual search engine. The company was based in Palo Alto, California. It was founded in Israel in 2006 and has been regarded as part of the country's "Download Valley" cluster of adware companies. Superfish's software is malware and adware. The software was bundled with various applications as early as 2010, and Lenovo began to bundle the software with some of its computers in September 2014. On February 20, 2015, the United States Department of Homeland Security advised uninstalling it and its associated root certificate, because they make computers vulnerable to serious cyberattacks, including interception of passwords and sensitive data being transmitted through browsers.

Download Valley is a cluster of software companies in Israel, producing and delivering adware to be installed alongside downloads of other software. The primary purpose is to monetize shareware and downloads. These software items are commonly browser toolbars, adware, browser hijackers, spyware, and malware. Another group of products are download managers, possibly designed to induce or trick the user to install adware, when downloading a piece of desired software or mobile app from a certain source.

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References

  1. ↑ "50.1% Stakes in Upclick Inc. and Lulu Software, Inc. and Adaware: Private Company Information". bloomberg.com. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
  2. 1 2 "A major new Internet player in Montreal". newswire.ca. March 26, 2018. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
  3. ↑ "adaware facebook page, about section". Facebook . Archived from the original on March 16, 2018. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  4. ↑ "The adaware story". Adaware. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  5. 1 2 "Solaria Fund acquires software business from Lavasoft - Mannheimer Swartling". Mannheimerswartling.se. January 18, 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2012.
  6. 1 2 Bradbury, Danny. "Lavasoft owners ran dodgy websites". iTnews. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Release notes - Adaware". adaware.com. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Ad-Aware Free Tech Specs - Lavasoft". Lavasoft. Retrieved November 9, 2007.
  9. ↑ "Ad-Aware User Manual" (PDF). Lavasoft.com. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  10. ↑ Hopkins, John A. "Ad-Aware 2008 7.1.0.8 - Free software downloads and software reviews - CNET Download.com". Download.cnet.com. Retrieved November 9, 2010.
  11. ↑ "Page 3 - Ad-Aware Pro Anniversary Edition Review: Computer Security Articles at". Brighthub.com. May 4, 2010. Retrieved November 9, 2010.
  12. ↑ "Ad-Aware v8.1, Powered by People Anti-Malware Protection". Brighthub.com. July 19, 2010. Retrieved November 9, 2010.
  13. ↑ "Ad-Aware Product Comparison". Lavasoft. January 22, 2014. Archived from the original on January 22, 2014. Retrieved January 22, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Ad-Aware Free Antivirus+ Review". Yahoo! News. December 8, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Ad-Aware Free Antivirus+ 11". PC Magazine. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  16. 1 2 "Editorial Review of Ad-Aware Pro". PC World. October 13, 2009. Archived from the original on November 24, 2009. Retrieved October 31, 2009.
  17. ↑ Rubenking, Neil J. "Ad-Aware Pro Internet Security 8.3". PC Magazine.
  18. ↑ "Ad-Aware Free". n.d. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Antivirus Market Share Report January 2015 | OPSWAT". www.opswat.com. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
  20. ↑ "Daniel Assouline - SC Magazine". Scmagazineus.com. August 5, 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2012.
  21. ↑ Danny Bradbury (March 3, 2006). "Money for nothing | Media". The Guardian. London. Retrieved May 25, 2012.
  22. ↑ Danchev, Dancho (March 20, 2008). "Dancho Danchev's Blog - Mind Streams of Information Security Knowledge: Cybersquatting Security Vendors for Fraudulent Purposes". Ddanchev.blogspot.com. Retrieved May 25, 2012.
  23. ↑ Danchev, Dancho. "How to Remove Securesearch.lavasoft.com Redirect Virus from your computer?(Removal Guide)". Frances. Retrieved April 23, 2013.
  24. ↑ "Lavasoft Information for VU#529496". www.kb.cert.org. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  25. ↑ Blue, Violet. "Zero Day Weekly: Superfish attacks, FBI GameoverZeus bounty, Komodia in Lavasoft | ZDNet". ZDNet. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  26. ↑ "Gefährliche Adware: Mehr als ein Dutzend Anwendungen verbreiten Superfish-Zertifikat" [Dangerous Aware: More than a Dozen Applications spreading Superfish Certificate]. Heise Security . February 24, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
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