Microsoft today announced a change to how it will handle adware, a form of malware that pushes unwanted advertising messages to the user. Starting July 1, the company's security products will immediately stop any adware they detect and notify the user, who can then reinstall the program if they really need to.
Currently, when one of Microsoft's security products (including Microsoft Security Essentials and Microsoft Forefront) detects a program as adware, it notifies the user and offers a recommended action. If the user does nothing, the security product will let the program continue to run.
The reason Microsoft has chosen a July 1, 2014 release date for the new feature is because it wants to give developers three months to comply with the new rules. The company states:
“We classify a program as adware if it runs on the user’s machine and generates notifications to promote products or services. If the program displays advertisements within its context, there will be no problem.
"Many programs use advertising as a means of revenue for their developers, which is an acceptable practice. We are more concerned about advertising that intrudes into our Windows experience without our customers' choice or control."
Specifically, ads opened by these programs should include obvious ways to close the ad, as well as the name of the program that created the ad. At the same time, the program that creates these ads should provide a standardized uninstall method and not use the same name as another program that included it in the installation.
It seems like a really good move on Microsoft's part, and the thing is they didn't do it sooner.
TNW
