The PCMag and Motherboard of Vice conducted a research that focuses on Avast and AVG Antivirus. These two free antivirus claim that collect user data anonymously.
Αhowever, they seem to ultimately allow tech and online giants to track the actual activity of the users who choose them.
How much does "free" cost
Avast and its subsidiary AVG are embroiled in a personal data scandal. PCMag and Motherboard research reveals how they offer user data choosing antivirus-free versions to giants such as Microsoft, Google, and Amazon.
With the exception of open source software, the number of really free programs and services are constantly declining. Usually, "free" programs remind the user that if he pays he will receive more.
Many do not know it, but many times the user's reaction to such practices is recorded as statistical survey data. And this is just a simple example of how companies that provide otherwise free services or software turn their users into products.
The problem becomes even greater when one finds programs that aim to protect the user from malicious acts, like AVG Antivirus, use similar or the same tactics.
The free version of AVG Antivirus monitors the activity of its users on the Internet, and shares the data with Jumpshot, a subsidiary that specializes in online marketing.
Specifically, it collects browsing history and data about online purchases. Jumpshot customers can thus accurately know the user's habits and place him in a specific group of consumers.
Avast presents the data collection as anonymous and states that it is unable to use this information to locate or target the user.
PCMag and Motherboard research shows that data collection by AVG Antivirus is anything but anonymous. Although the data is not linked to a specific IP address or by e-mail, Avast associates them with what it calls a "device ID".
This unique identifier is supposed to guarantee anonymity of the user, but in essence betrays his identity. If the device with ID 1234 visited Amazon to buy an iPad Pro via Safari v.13.0.4 on 25/12/20 at 14:34:33 and 72 ms, Amazon is able to know who made the iPad visit.
The only way for an AVG Antivirus user to remain anonymous is to turn off data collection or choose another antivirus that will not cost them their personal data.
What Avast says
Following the release of the data, Avast published its response to this issue. The full text is as follows:
We ensure that Jumpshot does not acquire personal identification information, including name, email address or contact details. Users have always had the option to refuse to share data with Jumpshot. In July 2019, we had already started to set up an explicit choice of acceptance or refusal for all new downloads of our software. And we now invite our current free users to make a choice of acceptance or refusal, a process that will be completed in February 2020.
Our privacy policy details the protections we put in place for all of our users. They can also choose to adjust their level of privacy using the wide range of parameters available in our products. This includes controlling any data sharing at any time. We voluntarily comply with the privacy requirements of the GDPR and the California Consumer Protection Act (CCPA) for our entire global user base.
We have a long history of protecting devices and user data from malware. Of course, we understand and take seriously the responsibility of balancing user privacy with the necessary use of data for our core security products.
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