Creative Labs: Advertising Spyware

Published by

Just spotted this bit of info posted over at Neowin's Forum by Neowin Insider!

NewsUpd.exe is a spyware program that is silently installed when installing certain Creative Labs hardware, including the SoundBlaster ? 16. This program is not disclosed in the License Agreement or mentioned in the relevant documentation.

This really burns me up. This isn't some sleazy shareware application downloaded from God-knows-where, but legitimately purchased hardware from a legitimate-looking company, that is installing advertising spyware along with its hardware drivers!! This is a clear betrayal of user trust. (Ed. note: I discovered this particular piece of spyware when installing a Creative Labs SB16 on my OWN system, so I am quite obviously angered. The heads-up came when Zone Alarm alerted me that an unknown application newsupd.exe was trying to access the Internet. Creative has yet to make good on my request for a refund on my advertising-subsidized hardware purchase.)

Creative Labs: Advertising Spyware