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FTC And PC Rental Companies Settle In Spying On Users Case
SternisheFan writes with news of a settlement in a case of Rent-to-Own firms grossly violating the privacy of their customers. From the article: "Seven rent-to-own companies and a software developer have settled federal charges that they spied on customers, ... The companies captured screenshots of confidential and personal information, logged keystrokes, and took webcam pictures of people in their homes. Their aim was to track the computers belonging to customers who were behind with their payments.
'An agreement to rent a computer doesn't give a company license to access consumers' private emails, bank account information, and medical records, or, even worse, webcam photos of people in the privacy of their own homes,' says FTC chairman Jon Leibowitz. 'The FTC orders today will put an end to their cyber spying.' Developer DesignerWare produced the software that was used to gather the information, PC Rental Agent. The package included a 'kill switch' designed to disable a computer of it was stolen, or if payments weren't made. However, an add-on program called Detective Mode could log key strokes, capture screen shots and take photographs using a computer's webcam, says the FTC in its complaint (PDF)."
Well it just goes to show the lengths some companies will go to in the persuit of profit.
Video Game cheats, hints a
So that's who wrote Flame and Stuxnet.....
sudo make me a sandwich
...does that stuff run in Linux? And if it doesn't, should I complain about reduced quality of service? I feel discriminated against!
Ezekiel 23:20
The FTC orders today will put an end to their cyber spying
New! Regulatory hot-air with built-in enforcement!
I've never personally used a rent-to-own service, but I can't imagine it's much fun when your marketed crowd is people who can't afford things outright, then specifically deadbeats who have zero intention of ever buying it and will go to great lengths to try and keep your merchandise.
But there's some shady about this whole story that just doesn't make a lot of sense. Why on earth would a rent-to-own company have a whole development team designing all this for them? I think there was a bit of wrongful intent on the company to want to try and steal some PII; maybe not use it themselves, but sell that information, sure.
Now being tied up with a legal battle, it's now easy for their lawyers to pull out the scapegoat that it was all about protecting their investment and assets. As much as I buy that, that's what the repo-man makes a living for. And if you're losing that many computer assets of non-payment or delinquency, then start selling bottom-line PCs and bring some pimple-faced Best Buy let-go in to oversell and dramatize the hell out of them for you. Or better yet, just stop selling them altogether.
But where are the penalties for breaking the law? Bad boy don't do it again just isn't good enough.
And the fake registration scam, wouldn't that be considered malware?
In the age of new $400 laptops, who rents a computer for home use? Rental companies (furniture, appliances, etc) are like payday loan companies: their sole purpose is to prey on the poor and uninformed. The profit is in penalties and reclaiming the product to lease to the next sucker. These transactions are designed to fail and trap the unsuspecting.
What if the users explicitly agreed to this spying in their rental contracts?
It's better to vote for what you want and not get it than to vote for what you don't want and get it.
- E. Debs
Direct your outrage on this on to the people who let them get away with this. They settled for no fines or penalties. When the watchers let the scumbags get off with a slap on the wrist the message is clear.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=T17XQI_AYNo
Lest we forget the phone software on HTC handsets that among other things logged keystrokes, captured app usage etc. They denied it, the security researcher showed it logging passwords in into a file, captured SMS's web pages visited, intercepted the location data even if you refuse it to a website etc.. He also points out it has permissions to record audio, read messages, read keys, read the contacts list, web pages visited, even HTTPS page data etc.
http://androidsecuritytest.com/features/logs-and-services/loggers/carrieriq/carrieriq-part2/
Their software on the phone would receive a configuration file, that file would tell it what to log and upload to Carrier IQ's servers. An FOI request to the FBI to obtain the manuals they had on the software was rejected. They confirmed they had operator manuals for it, they wouldn't release them:
https://www.muckrock.com/news/archives/2011/dec/12/fbi-carrier-iq-files-used-law-enforcement-purposes/
So most likely it's a widespread spying app. If the FBI's hands are dirty then it's unlikely you will see a prosecution in this case.
Nobody has time to read all that lawyer-spewn horseshit, not even lawyers. And the lawyers only look at it when they decide they want a way to weasel out of whatever they "agreed" to.
EULAs, along with forcing everybody to accept arbitration just goes to show how rotten our system has become. If you're going to rob me, at least have the courtesy of sticking a gun in my face so I have reasonable cause to remove you from the gene pool.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
That’s what I'd be doing with those.
My simple rule: Never ever use an OS you haven't installed and secured yourself. Either wipe it, or use your own live medium.
(And if you aren't skilled enough, either make pretty damn sure the person doing it is a very trusted personal friend, or stop being a lazy ass and learn that shit! It's so easy, a chimpanzee can do it. You're not a chimpanzee, stop making excuses!)
Did the rental companies operate in multiple states? I thought most of these rental places were just one-store deals.
I'm not a lawyer, but I play one on the Internet. Blog
1 declare all RTO agreements "completed" AND refund all payments made (so the victim keeps the computer)
2 have a third party service the machine and declare BY COURT ORDER that the "spy" software was removed completely
3 the company must file a document stating that any and all files/logs or other records from this software have been deleted from company systems (to include any contractors or any company the information has been disclosed to)
4 all computers rented from this point on must have a highly visible notice as to what kind of monitoring/remote access software has been installed
Any person using FTFY or editing my postings agrees to a US$50.00 charge
Buying a home is something that is a good idea, but only in some circumstances. If you don't meet the circumstances, then renting is a good idea since you need to have some place to live. Basically you need to:
1) Be able to afford it. You can nearly always find a rental for less than it costs to buy. If you can't afford the mortgage payments on a normal 30 year fixed mortgage, then owning is a bad idea.
2) Be willing to stay for 5 years or more. Buying costs money. If you buy a house and leave soon after, you will lose money on the deal. You normally need to stay for 5ish years to make it a good proposition.
3) Have the savings to deal with repairs of necessary things that might come up. Depending on your skill and physical ability, some things you can do yourself, but either way you are responsible for repairing your house so you need to be able to do that.
If you meet those criteria, then ownership is a great idea. I have owned my house for about 9 years now and I am very glad I do. But renting can be the right answer in many situations.
Also in terms of cars renting a car for a permanent daily thing is stupid but that isn't how most people do it. Car rental is when you temporarily need a car for something, either because you are in another city or you need a truck but don't own one or the like. It is quite sensible in those cases, rather than buying.
What if the users explicitly agreed to this spying in their rental contracts?
Basic Contract Law would disallow this. Contracts are only valid when they are legal, mutual and entered into freely by people capable of a "meeting of minds." Contracts between two people of unequal understanding are void on their face. This is why you can't make contracts with children, the intoxicated or people of unsound mind. This is why the Courts generally protect "unsophisticated investors" from financial cardsharps, and why they take a very dim view of certain types of auto dealers who try to sell cars "as-is." It doesn't even have to be an "unconscionable contract," though I would argue that this case certainly would be. Any contract that obviously has one party taking advantage of the other is void on its face.
Think of it as the "Fair Fight" Principle. The Courts would generally allow Tyson and Ali in their prime to square off and call it "good." They wouldn't allow me to step in the ring with either, even if I agreed to it, because the Courts should not be in the business of providing legal cover to homicide.
He put his boots up on the table and made a face. "The sig," he smirked. "You can waste your life in search of the sig."
It's also a good reason why clauses blocking class-action are bad, and should be illegal.
People in these sort of situations generally CAN'T afford a lawyer to fight the abuse that IS happening. However they can form a class action. They might not get compensated financially, but they can punish the offending company and force them to clean up their act.
This is similar to used car dealerships that use PassTime , whereby a person that doesn't pay for their car on-time can't drive it and, thanks to the built-in GPS, the person constantly has their whereabouts tracked. This is done purely to keep the money rolling in, hardship be damned.
Fifty watts per channel, baby cakes.
Glad to see at least one other person remembers this "quaint" old idea.... :-)
He put his boots up on the table and made a face. "The sig," he smirked. "You can waste your life in search of the sig."