IP: Comcast spy software? [ or does Comcast really know what they are doing djf]

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Either Comcast is devious and/or they have no idea of what they are doing. 
It sounds to me that that company needs a firm foot in the rear end either 
by having some advisors who know what is up or Government (city/state/or fed)

Dave


> From: "K.Ellis" <guavaberry () earthlink net>
> To: David Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>
>
>
> Dave,
>
> Art Wolinsky is a ringleader on the Educational CyberPlayGround and sent 
> this to me, for IP if useful.
>
> best,
> Karen
>
> -snip-
>
> Date: Sat, 16 Feb 2002 19:10:04 -0500
> Subject: [DUC] Comcast spy software?
>
>
> Hi Folks,
>
>
> I used to have Adelphia cable, which became Comcast@HOME, which became
> Comcast.net.  On 2/8 I received my transition package with the simple
> 3-Step Guide to download and install the Comcast High Speed Internet
> software as soon as possible to set up my email address and ensure that I
> receive the reserved User Name.
>
>
> I did just that.  The installation placed a Comcast Support Icon on my
> desktop.  I thought nothing more of it.  Shortly thereafter a critical
> piece of software began to malfunction.  Over a period of a week or so, the
> performance degraded to the point where I had to seek a solution.  I began
> doing everything I knew to track down the conflict.  I got the latest
> Windows service pack, ran all the appropriate Norton Utilities, and
> uninstalled everything that wasn't mission critical on the machine.
>
>
> I was at the point where I was about to reformat the hard drive and start
> over, and that was something I dreaded, not because I didn't know how to do
> it, but because it would take forever to reinstall the dozens of programs I
> use.  I had just burned the first of a series of CD's I would need to back
> up important data when I noticed some activity on the Task Bar in the
> tray.  It looked like a moving DNA spiral.  When I passed the mouse over
> it, it read "Support.com Protecting".
>
>
> I had never seen this before and I never knowingly installed any such
> software.  Suddenly I remembered the Comcast Support icon. Could
> this  activity be related.  I went to Support.com and found "Support.com
> (Nasdaq:SPRT) is the world's leading provider of support automation
> software. Support.com's patented software platform allows businesses to
> automate and personalize the support..."
>
>
> Yes it was. I immediately uninstalled it and my performance problems went
> away, but what was this software doing running on my machine?  I had
> subscribed to an Internet Service Provider, I didn't hire a body guard.  So
> I called Comcast tech support and asked about the activity on the tray.
> They didn't seem to know.  So I decided to do a little investigating...
>
>
> When I uninstalled the Comcast Support software I noticed another package
> named Broadjump Client Foundation.  The Add/Remove window indicated it was
> used Frequently with the last use being today.  A quick Internet search led
> me to this information at the BoradJump site.
>
>
> "BroadJump has brought to market a proven engine for generating revenue
> from the point of installation forward in ways never before possible.
> Instead of simply offering a "fat pipe," service providers are now capable
> of profitably delivering the specific goods and services their subscribers
> most want and need."
>
>
> "Builds a database of subscriber demographics and buying behaviors to help
> evolve and refine marketing efforts..."
>
>
> Are you beginning to see what I am getting paranoid?
>
>
> At this point I got back in contact with Comcast.  They didn't know about
> what the software did.  At that point I said, "How can you have every
> customer load software on their machine and not know what it does?  I don't
> know if that bothers you as someone who has to support the software, but I
> know I'm not hanging up until I find out what it does.  That got me
> transferred to the top level of tech support who didn't seem  to know much
> more about it except that I was able to get the following information
> confirmed.
>
>
> 1) Neither piece of software is needed by Comcast subscribers.
> 2) The support software has caused significant performance problems and
> they are not recommending installing it until the next release.
> 3) They said that they didn't know anything about BroadJump Client
> Foundation, but thought that it was left over from the @HOME days.
>
>
> To this I say, if neither piece of software is needed, why did the
> transition letter make it look like it was critical?  If BroadJump was left
> over from the @HOME days, why does the installation time stamp coincide
> with the Comcast Support installation?  If they have every customer load
> software on their machine, why don't they know what the software does?
>
>
> At this point I uninstalled BroadJump Client Foundation and got the
> following message: "Warning: Uninstalling this application could impair
> that functionality of other applications installed on this computer.  Are
> you sure you want to continue?"
>
>
> You bet I did!
>
>
> Couple all this with last week's report that Comcast is tracking the web
> usage of all of their customers, you can see why I am paranoid.
>
>
> If you have Comcast, I would strongly suggest that you uninstall their
> support software and the BoradJump Client software and if you have any
> further insights, I'd appreciate hearing them. For those of you who have
> friends or acquaintances who might want to look into this situation
> further, please feel free to pass this message along to them.
>
>
> Art
> ***************************************************************
>   Art Wolinsky                        awolinsky () oii org
>   OII Technology Director         http://oii.org
>   (609) 597-9481 ext 337
>
>   ECP Ringleader <http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/ringleaders/art.html>
>
> ***************************************************************
> I am perfectly capable of learning from my mistakes.
> I will surely learn a great deal today.
> ***************************************************************
>
>
> <>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>
> Karen Ellis
> The Educational CyberPlayGround
> http://www.cyberpg.com/
> 7 Hot Site Awards from New York Times, USA Today , MSNBC,
> Earthlink USA Today Best Bets For Educators, Macworld Top Fifty
> Philadelphia Inquirer <http://education.philly.com/>
> <>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>~~~~~<>

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