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Comments:
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- on Mon 13 Jun 2011
- 11:29:38 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
Another installer incoporating unwanted addons in their products. :( Looks like you can opt out of this toolbar although anything that has the Ask toolbar I iwont trust.
Using an obese PC. I offer it a bit and it takes a megabyte.
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- on Tue 14 Jun 2011
- 06:03:01 AM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
Disgusting, I knew about them partnering with Uniblue, but not ask...
Time to install Avast I guess. :/ -
- on Tue 14 Jun 2011
- 06:28:50 AM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
While it's not necessarily unusual for free software to seek ad support, and I can sympathize with that tactic in some cases . . . c'mon, the Ask Toolbar? Bad business decision, IMO.
This excerpt from the dslreports link:
"People trust their security software companies. When they find that trust has been misplaced, winning it back may be impossible. For a company such as Avira, that has worked hard for and earned a stellar reputation in the security community, an ill-advised business decision can be a financial disaster."My hero is still BillP with WinPatrol . . . the only one I can think of that has not pulled that nonsense yet.
Is this cause to think Avira has declined in detection rates? I don't think so.
Is this cause to select another vendor? For those of us that have a dim view of the Ask toolbar and anybody who partners with them . . . probably.
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- on Tue 14 Jun 2011
- 07:21:21 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
Thank you all for your replies.
It is really a shame, I'm used to warn my friends and collegues about Ask toolbar and other unwanted or undesiderable add ons.
Hopefully this "Avira toolbar" even if you uncheck it, won't install AskInstallChecker.exe anywayhttp://www.online-armor.com/oasis2/file/ask_com/as...
Moreover I fully agree with BobJam
My hero is still BillP with WinPatrolI started using Winpatrol about ten years ago and it is the first software that I usually install in any computer with Windows
festina lente (hurry slowly)
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- on Mon 20 Jun 2011
- 10:14:34 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
Quoting from the first link that leofelix provided:
"Until now, Avira has always detected ASK toolbar as malware as they have also detected Uniblue products until now."
How absurd! I haven't tried Avira before, but sometimes recommended them as on of the free offers. From now on I won't...
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark, Scandinavia, Europe. Languages: Danish, English (and a bit Norwegian and Swedish).
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- on Tue 21 Jun 2011
- 06:07:10 AM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
I can understand bundling with an installer to try to create revenue, however bundling with someone that you had once listed as malware... and then removing them from the database is just like saying "Yes, we are for sale... but trust us we won't let anything bad happen to your systems."
It is easy to forget that these free products do cost something, either in bandwidth charges, updates to the software scanner or db, or a large majority of other things... but there are good ways to make money... and then bad ways.
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- on Thu 23 Jun 2011
- 03:45:11 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
I can understand bundling with an installer to try to create revenue, however bundling with someone that you had once listed as malware... and then removing them from the database is just like saying "Yes, we are for sale... but trust us we won't let anything bad happen to your systems."It is easy to forget that these free products do cost something, either in bandwidth charges, updates to the software scanner or db, or a large majority of other things... but there are good ways to make money... and then bad ways.
Love what you said and agree completely.
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- on Thu 23 Jun 2011
- 03:46:46 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
Quoting from the first link that leofelix provided:"Until now, Avira has always detected ASK toolbar as malware as they have also detected Uniblue products until now."
How absurd! I haven't tried Avira before, but sometimes recommended them as on of the free offers. From now on I won't...
Me two avira = Trashbin
No more recommendations!
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- on Mon 27 Jun 2011
- 03:55:27 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
Seriously?! Wth! I love Avira just as much as I hate Ask! I dont know what came into their minds but this is absolutely a bad move! Ask, the way I see it, is like a virus. Come on Avira people, you gotta be kidding me!
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- on Tue 28 Jun 2011
- 05:27:45 PM UTC
Aviras own version
"Recently, some of you have gotten in touch with us to express concerns regarding a Uniblue promotion we ran in the United States. Uniblue is a company which develops and promotes PC Utility software. The offering of Uniblue was a registry scanner, which would allow our users to make 15 repairs free of charge. If the user finds the service valuable, they are offered to buy the full version, which does not have any repair limits. If the user does not feel the service fulfilled it’s promise, Uniblue offers a 30 day money back guarantee. Avira has relationships with many vendors whose products offer functionality we believe our users will value. As an example, we have recently established a partnership with ask.com, to develop the Avira SearchFree Toolbar. The toolbar will be available for our “Free” users as part of service pack 2 this summer, if opted by the user to install they will receive additional web security features previously only available to our paying customers...."
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark, Scandinavia, Europe. Languages: Danish, English (and a bit Norwegian and Swedish).
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- on Tue 28 Jun 2011
- 06:15:20 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
I'm uninstalling Avira and reinstalling Avast now.
Avira site rating (from me) lowered from 95 to 40.
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- on Tue 28 Jun 2011
- 09:39:03 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
This happened to me this morning. I went to do my weekly scan & after doing the scan I did an update which must have been the service pack because it was quite large. Then this popup announced webguard & the Avira toolbar. There is no way to say no. All the popup says is "install now or install later". No choice to install webguard without the toolbar. So I am simply closing the popup whenever it shows up. Heck I do that whenever iTunes tries to update.
Shame on a security company for doing this. I don't like AVG(horrible detection rate) & McAfee & Norton have bad reputations for messing up your system.
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- on Wed 29 Jun 2011
- 07:29:53 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
I for one have used Avira for a long time, always recommend it to others as I do computer repair for most of my living. I know for a fact through the free version, I have had many decide to buy it.
I do understand there are costs involved but I also recall a day, not that long ago, where there were no toolbars really and freeware was still put forth regardless. So are we in the train of thought that in order to be free, they need these toolbar and other ad-ons? Or is it simply more money to the company? Hard to say.
Either case, the way they went about this, made me lose my trust in Avira, after years of use, I am saying goodbye to it. As of today, I find a new anti-virus.
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- on Wed 29 Jun 2011
- 09:41:18 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
The Ask toolbar is not installed unless the user decides to do so. Avira does "push" it by displaying a nag screen popup which says "Install now" or "Install later" there is no "I decline" option. However, in Avira configuration, the "Webguard" is pre-selected and this is the "extended security" they speak of. When you deselect that option and save the configuration, the nag screen disappears.
I figure I use WOT and do not need Avira's "web detection of untrustworthy sites" - as an Avira user, I inform them of many they are unaware of which are then reported (email response) as being added to a new update.
It is disappointing since Avira mentions that $5 USD of the annual subscription rate is transferred to maintain the costs of the "free edition" - one would think they would reduce the subscription costs if they're relying on third-party toolbar s to recuperate expenses for the free AV. None the less, Avira has a decent AV and I'll still recommend it, my wife uses the free version on her PC, I just dfo the upgrades for her. ;-)
re: Avira SearchFree Toolbar
For those who may have inadvertently installed the toolbar: How can I remove the Avira Toolbar?------- WOT Services Ltd. - gives us safety through Web of Trust. WOT Community - gives us security through unity. ∞
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- on Wed 29 Jun 2011
- 10:17:08 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
From the Avira forum post that phantazm quoted: "Uniblue is a company which develops and promotes PC Utility software. The offering of Uniblue was a registry scanner . . ."
For those that may be wondering about Uniblue's registry scanner: http://www.mywot.com/en/forum/5306-uniblue-again.
While bundling the Ask Toolbar may be one thing, the Uniblue promotion is quite another.
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- on Wed 29 Jun 2011
- 10:50:12 PM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
[snip]
While bundling the Ask Toolbar may be one thing, the Uniblue promotion is quite another.Uniblue / Trialpay / and others...
You'll only see these offers on that nag popup when updating definition files; I close it as soon as it displays so I never see "who" is being advertised for "what" :D------- WOT Services Ltd. - gives us safety through Web of Trust. WOT Community - gives us security through unity. ∞
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- on Thu 30 Jun 2011
- 01:04:18 AM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
I did wait. I denied the web security, but it comes back numerous times when using the computer. The only way I see to get rid of it, is to install it or uninstall Avira. On that note, people already hated the update popup, they promised to remove it, they didn't. I have downloaded every new version that comes along, it was always on my PC.
All these security softwares are becoming bloated junk. I used Avira because it was still simple compared to most, not all looks and bloat. I find it amazing how prior, before Avira was popular, heck, most would ask me if I was sure it was a real AV, lol, now, that it's making the top lists all the time, $$cha-ching$$
So once again, it was free without all the crap prior, before there were more users, now, suddenly they need this. I'm sorry, if all these software, many better prior than now at their jobs, had free versions prior, still got along just fine, suddenly, it's fad. , $$cha-ching$$
Larger corporations like Google, Ask, etc... digging their way into every aspect of our life, controlling our freeware now, hanging the bait on a hook for freeware or free versions to bite, getting a taste of the big green. , $$cha-ching$$ , $$cha-ching$$
It's not about what we want anymore, it's what corporations want. , $$cha-ching$$
And I do want to add, Avira could ignore me, little old me, who has spread the word for years, as well as many others who do the same, but without us, your loyal whipping posts, you are never going to go on. Let see you survive with just toolbars and no one to use the software.
I bet things would change overnight.
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- on Thu 30 Jun 2011
- 01:36:55 AM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
I was thinking that part of Avira's good performance has stemmed from their popularity among the sort of people who are capable of identifying any malware their AV misses and also willing to take the time to submit it for analysis. I've sent them plenty of zero-days, I know. If they alienate just those users, their performance ranking may slip next.
I've always paid for AntiVir ($25 a year is a very competitive price), so this doesn't affect me. But I'm sorry to see Avira go down this road.
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- on Thu 30 Jun 2011
- 02:03:38 AM UTC
RE: Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
I was thinking that part of Avira's good performance has stemmed from their popularity among the sort of people who are capable of identifying any malware their AV misses and also willing to take the time to submit it for analysis. I've sent them plenty of zero-days, I know. If they alienate just those users, their performance ranking may slip next.I've always paid for AntiVir ($25 a year is a very competitive price), so this doesn't affect me. But I'm sorry to see Avira go down this road.
That's a very good point to bring up, glad you did. I myself have sent in numerous FP's over time and other valid detections and they will definitely be losing out in that manner as well. So yes, I agree 100%.
Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar
Avira has partnered with Uniblue and ASK toolbar.
more informations:
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r25973411-Avira-Pa...
http://www.calendarofupdates.com/updates/index.php...
http://www.avira.com/en/support-for-home-faq-detai...
festina lente (hurry slowly)