Which antivirus respect your privacy and allow you to send NO data to their cloud?

Discussion in 'other anti-virus software' started by Aimi, Oct 3, 2012.

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  1. Techwiz

    Techwiz Registered Member

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    I'm not an expert in this area so correct me if I'm wrong.

    From how it was explained to me, cloud scanners such as Panda Cloud look at the hash value of the files on your computer and compare them. This got me thinking, I'm not an expert and do not claim to be so correct me if I'm wrong, that cloud av companies could collect and sell my data.

    The theory assumes three things:
    (1) I assume they can identify the file based on it's hash value
    (2) I assume that value is unique depending on download source.
    example: Amazon MP3 vs iTunes MP3 (MP3 is just a generic example)
    (3) I assume the application assigns a unique (user ID) and collects other identifiable information.

    Now I'm assuming that unlike sensitive data (passwords) the hash information collected is not handled the same. I'm not a expert, but I have been told that websites use (or at least they should use) SALT to make dictionary attacks impractical. From my limited understand, this wouldn't apply to simple hash values for files on my computer.

    My questions:
    Is a reverse look up then possible?


    Cloud companies could also then collect identifiable information (indirectly)?
    Indirectly in the context, that they can identify the file without actually looking or physically obtaining a copy of it. Also, that either through the use of a user ID or other information (IP, etc.)


    Lastly, this could be fully automated so that information collected is immediately sent to the 3rd party data collector? Privacy policies claiming not to store the information would then be true, since it was formed and sent, but not physically kept.

    I'm not accusing any companies of doing this ... just generally inquiring whether it is possible.

    Just want to add that I've been using Panda Cloud AV (Free) for a couple weeks now and am very happy :)
     
  2. Mman79

    Mman79 Registered Member

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    Techwiz, I'm not an expert in the area either. However, I think perhaps you're giving these companies too much credit in regards to what they're able to do. Furthermore, I'd ask why would they go to what seems to be way too complex of an effort to sell data. There are just much too easier pieces of data willingly given like email addresses, purchase data and names to do what you're concerned about. They don't need to know what a file is or where it came from, they just need to be able to scan those files for the tell-tell signatures of known malware and to watch when files are executed to detect funny goings on.
     
  3. Techwiz

    Techwiz Registered Member

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    With so many data collectors and targeted ads, I guess I'm just getting paranoid. I think cloud solutions could be beneficial to a layered security approach as long as the remote access to my system isn't being exploited by the company in question or by some unwelcome 3rd party. Such as been my fear of wireless home security systems. Honestly, why would I want my front door to unlock/lock remotely? Anyways, another off-topic rant.
     
  4. Sir paranoids

    Sir paranoids Registered Member

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    Yip agreed Techwiz and the simple way to have that is to never allow 3rd party access to your computer with out your permission, then your shore theirs no problems about them invading your privacy and that's why 3rd party's are imho pushing so hard to setup the hole cloud joke, to data mine to the max.

    Here one more nice example curtsy of Cisco~linksys

    Who in their right mind would want to remotely access their router from a cloud :thumbd:

    (1) i would hope so if not the hash value not really useful to anyone lol.
    (2) that would make scene as well though not as big a deal on the privacy topic depending on this that and the other thing.
    (3) that's the one i don't like the tag and bag topic that links you right back to every exe or file they suck out of your pc though doing it the old stile way doesn't really change anything on this topic if the app in question adds a user ID to every file that leaves your pc.

    like zenok AV, what a pos but still i have to give em bonus points for being honest about what they take from your computer.
    At lest they tell it like it is unlike some of the other AV out their that don't and do the same thing.

    like for zenOK AV if you find out after the fact that their data mining you dry hay that's your problem seeing as its not like they didn't tell it to your face,you have no one to blame but your self for not reading the agreement before installing.
    Im good with that.

    avira on the other hand is doing the same as zenOK but worse because their legal agreement is all most a lie and that's a different story and imho they should be class action sued,but what can you do hu ? with out open source software is really hard to know whats going on with the program in question unless you want to decompile their code just like someone did with AVG pos anti virus for cell phones that didn't do anything besides turn on your GPS and track all your movements for as long as the app was installed so they could record everything you do and at the same time data mine everything they wanted to off your junk, joy :mad:
    ps ty "Justin Angel, a former Microsoft employee" for that.

    my solution is simple,don't touch my network connection then im shore theirs no dirt bag action, more then that and if i read somewhere they corporate player "X" pulled a fast one their banned for life from my pc = no more problems.

    And as for the augment that it can't be done offline seeing as it take too much computer resource's to do it ummm ok maybe in real time mode vs the cpu\ram i can see that but not in offline mode as you sleep and the AV douse a full sweep of your hole computer that is if you leave the computer running over night.
    As for the hdd space topic spare me, 1000gigs is cheap atm ..you have the space.
    then the AV has all the time in the world to get the job done right.

    More on the AV spy topic why fix java script when you can have a AV browser hijack plug-in pos that records all your data and phones home to the master server cloud stile in order to better protect you hemm I wonder .
    My self i just disable java ,problem solved and I don’t need your plug-in :D
    wake me up when java isn't broken and ill enable it, no more drive by downloads for you.

    Btw VLC players getting really good at playing Flash vids,flash player days are numbered the way VLC is going ,good job vlc.
    Flash player is malware just like java script.

    Funny, you know no one would stand for this kind of crap in the win98 days.

    why don't i trust em simple lol
    THE CORPORATION
    That's more or less a GPL movie enjoy :cool:

    Edit: cleaned up some typos added better link to the movie link.
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2012
  5. Macstorm

    Macstorm Registered Member

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    Thanks for all that info and your time writing it :)

    Avira is not that bad guy, trust me ;)
     
  6. Sir paranoids

    Sir paranoids Registered Member

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    I do what i can.

    Relly the hole botcloud topic isn't that hard to understand now that iv bin at it for like 3 weeks in my free time.
    Its just like the old client and main frame server setup,i remember working just that a long long time ago at one point with the thin clients as their called now.

    They were called terminals back in the day and the master server had all the computer power the clients terminals had very little computer power if any and were little more then just a monitor and a keyboard,you didn't even get a mouse or a turtle as it was first called on the old apples ][ computers if i remember right.

    Think of it like a big massive computer that supports 50 keyboards and

    monitors if you want.
    That way the admin of the master computer has all the power and at theterminal side you have none,if i turn the master computer off your screen gos blank as well i have full accesses to all the data in question and you have none.
    the admin has all the power all the data & the end user has none and no privacy.

    So their trying to shift the computer power and a good chunk of your Private data off in to the net yay good job whatever.:blink:

    Data mining all the rage now.
    My self iv seen it all evolve from per pac man in video games and apple ][ computer and the hole topic is just ~ Snipped as per TOS ~ because i know what their going to use it for when no ones looking,sadly.

    You know they failed with pipa, sopa {US} and the lawful access act in
    Canada but did they really fail ?

    30 ways win7 phones home and data mines
    broswer spy link

    And that's just a taste of things to come the way things are going.
    really the biggest botcloud out their is windows and when you do the math on the privacy topic and add it all up no @#$% privacy on the net in dead "for some"

    My self i lock my pc down the the max with hackzor tools and custom low
    level mods and yes im still on xp.
    Im allergic to win7 and vista and done even get me started about win8.
    Linix mint 13 is as good as it gets on the Linux topic atm and its good and all but as the same time it blows and winxp is still better at lest on some levels.

    lol if you want worse then cloud AV look up something called {Cloud Devil OS}
    or as some people are calling it Cloud Evil OS

    Its sad things are the way the are, cus using a AV to setup a hole defense honeyNet botcloud douse make scene and that part i can see,sadly i know their just going to use it to data mine peoples computers and as for my self iv seen the onslaught of privacy invasion building up since 1978 and it sickens me because i know what their doing.:ouch:

    I can see right threw their rectal prolapse.

    Anyways ill drop the topic, and move on .theirs little more i can contribute to this thread.ill move on :\

    The Evils of Cloud Computing
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 31, 2012
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