#WWW WEATHERBUG UPDATE#

“The next update to the signature library will take place shortly. On Friday, the company received a response from Microsoft with the good news that the current signatures for Minibug will be removed. In the case of WeatherBug, the dispute-resolution process paid immediate dividends. zimages/4/28571.gif Read more here about Microsofts anti-spyware beta.Ī Microsoft spokeswoman said the beta product included a vendor dispute-resolution mechanism to deal with complaints from third-party companies. Its an inaccurate classification, and were very anxious to work with them to fix it,” OConnell said in an interview. “Its highly problematic when a brand with the reach of Microsoft has this kind of misidentification. On Thursday, when WeatherBug caught wind of the spyware classification, chief privacy officer Dan OConnell said the company initiated discussions with Microsoft to get it fixed. WeatherBug ships with AIM versions 5.5 and later and is an optional, prechecked download within the IM client. Weinstein told that the company “disagrees” with the Microsoft classification, adding that AOL is pleased with the progress of its partnership with WeatherBug. “The vast majority of anti-spyware providers do not consider WeatherBug to be spyware, including Aluria, our own anti-spyware provider,” said AOL spokesman Andrew Weinstein. However, officials at AOL and WeatherBug did not take too kindly to the classification.

The “Minibug” component, which is the ad-serving component of WeatherBug, was classified as low-risk, and the Microsoft Spyware default is set to ignore it. WeatherBug, which ships with America Online Inc.s instant messaging application, fetches temperature and weather-related content for users, but because it tracks a users geographic location to personalize the data, Microsofts spyware application is classifying it as a potential privacy risk. Microsoft Corp.s newly released anti-spyware is flagging a component of AWS Convergence Technologies WeatherBug application as a threat to Windows users, prompting an immediate complaint from the Gaithersburg, Md.-based company.

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