#IS AVAST SAFEZONE REALLY SAFE INSTALL#
#IS AVAST SAFEZONE REALLY SAFE UPDATE#

The problem is that Avast snuck this component in to their browser extensions that have at least 10 million users for the Chrome version alone.

#IS AVAST SAFEZONE REALLY SAFE INSTALL#

As a standalone product, if you specifically and deliberately choose to install something like this, thereвЂ™s nothing wrong with it. HereвЂ™s the thing: many people actually want shopping extensions that help them find better prices - in fact, one of the HTG staff writersВ recently asked me what wasВ the best way to find better prices. The problem lies in the SafePrice component of their Online Security extension, which adds shopping recommendations (ads) as you are browsing around the web. We were shocked to find out that some of the adware wasnвЂ™t from a third-party, but from Avast itself. Why are they adding a feature that spies on your browsing, inserts adsвЂ¦ and all without properly notifying you?ДЄvast Online Security ExtensionВ Added a вЂњShoppingвЂќ Component No, the install process didnвЂ™t tell us about this.ДЄbout a week ago, we were playing around with installing a lot of nonsense from crapware sites, so we loaded up trusty Avast antivirus to see how much of the malware it would actually catch during the process. So Avast hasВ stopped integrating the spying extension, but this is about the principle: you should be able to trust your antivirus provider. So if you are running the latest Chrome with extensions updated, you are fine. The purpose of writing these types of articles isnвЂ™t to be vindictive - we just honestly want to make the world a better place for PC users.Д«efore we go even one step further, itвЂ™s important to note that they recently disabled the spying вЂњshoppingвЂќ feature in their browser extension. We stand by our article and our research with the exception of one very inconsequentialВ technical detail that we have updated below. Update: Avast has posted a response to our article on their forum. They have a decent product, and while you can read this for historical purposes, you should know that many of the other antivirus vendors are doing worse things.

#IS AVAST SAFEZONE REALLY SAFE UPDATE#

Update 2: We just want to point out that this happened in the past, and Avast has cleaned up their act. These arenвЂ™t just no-name developers either: even Avast,В one of the most trusted antivirus vendors was in on the game. We warned you at the beginning of the year that many of your browser extensions are spying on you, tracking what you are visiting, and even inserting ads into pages.

Is avast safezone really safe