McAfee SiteAdvisor: Difference between revisions
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===False Negatives=== |
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| ⚫ | A couple of sites which are obviously dangerous/ malicious are flagged as green like zedo.com, finallyfast.com and expertsexchange.com. This is even in spite of the fact that the comments on the Site Advisor rating page are almost all bad. For example, zedo.com is a well known distributor of adware, spyware and tracking cookies and even though its green, 88 of the comments are bad while a mere 5 are good. |
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===Communication and Accountability=== |
===Communication and Accountability=== |
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===Others=== |
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Also, the SiteAdvisor website is slow to load, which leads to people turning away from the site. |
Also, the SiteAdvisor website is slow to load, which leads to people turning away from the site. |
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| ⚫ | A couple of sites which are obviously dangerous/ malicious are flagged as green like zedo.com, finallyfast.com and expertsexchange.com. This is even in spite of the fact that the comments on the Site Advisor rating page are almost all bad. For example, zedo.com is a well known distributor of adware, spyware and tracking cookies and even though its green, 88 of the comments are bad while a mere 5 are good. |
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==Awards== |
==Awards== |
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Revision as of 12:36, 28 May 2009
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| File:SiteAdvisor Wesbite.png The McAfee SiteAdvisor Website showing the review for Wikipedia | |
| Developer(s) | McAfee |
|---|---|
| Initial release | April 2005 |
| Operating system | Cross-platform |
| Website | http://www.siteadvisor.com/ |
SiteAdvisor is an Internet service that warns users when downloading software or filling out forms on a web site that may make them victims of malware or spam. The service was originally provided by SiteAdvisor, Inc, an MIT startup[1] first presented at CodeCon on February 10, 2006[2] and acquired by McAfee[3] on April 5, 2006.
SiteAdvisor Plus
A paid version of McAfee SiteAdvisor, McAfee SiteAdvisor Plus, has extra features. The functionality of SiteAdvisor can be accessed either through a Browser Plugin or by submitting a URL to the website.
Extra features of McAfee SiteAdvisor
- Rates email and IM links
- Indicates sites potentially harmful to your computer
- Alerts users to possibles phishing and identity theft scams
- Redirects you away from red and yellow sites (if protected mode is enabled).
Criticism
False positives
SiteAdvisor has received criticism for incorrectly flagging web sites with a caution or warning label.[4][5][6]
False Negatives
A couple of sites which are obviously dangerous/ malicious are flagged as green like zedo.com, finallyfast.com and expertsexchange.com. This is even in spite of the fact that the comments on the Site Advisor rating page are almost all bad. For example, zedo.com is a well known distributor of adware, spyware and tracking cookies and even though its green, 88 of the comments are bad while a mere 5 are good.
Communication and Accountability
In the event of a positive result website owners are not contacted. Although a dispute resolution service does exist, the final decision rests with McAfee.[7] In the event that a perceived threat is removed from a site the site's rating will return to Green through a process called 'ageingout'. Depending on the nature of the threat this process can take from 10 days to a year after the site is re-crawled, no strict timetable is provided.[8]
Others
Also, the SiteAdvisor website is slow to load, which leads to people turning away from the site.
Awards
- Time magazine named SiteAdvisor.com among the 50 coolest websites of 2005.[9]
- Popular Science awarded SiteAdvisor the "Best of What's New" award in the Computing category for 2006.[10]
- PC World ranked SiteAdvisor at #15 in "The 100 Best Products of 2007."[11]
References
- ^ "McAfee acquires MIT startup SiteAdvisor at Digital..."
- ^ "CodeCon 2006 Program".
- ^ Dixon, Chris (2006-09-05). "Taking SiteAdvisor to the Next Level". Retrieved 2006-09-05.
- ^ "Malware Advisor". Retrieved 2008-04-16.
- ^ "McAfee SiteAdvisor gives PCmag.com yellow warning rating". Retrieved 2008-04-16.
- ^ "McAfee SiteAdvisor gives Bitsum Technologies a RED rating due to false alarm on developer utility". Retrieved 2008-12-01.
- ^ "What is the process for disputing my site's rating?" (PDF). Retrieved 2009-01-31.
- ^ "How long does it take for my site rating to change? Can I ask to be re-tested more quickly?" (PDF). Retrieved 2009-01-31.
- ^ "SiteAdvisor's entry in Time's 50 coolest websites of 2005". Retrieved 2006-10-13.
- ^ "SiteAdvisor's entry in Popular Science's Best of What's New 2006". Retrieved 2007-04-20.
- ^ "PC World's list of "The 100 Best Products of 2007"". Retrieved 2007-05-23.
External links
- Official SiteAdvisor Website
- Examples of SiteAdvisor reports:
- SiteAdvisor's report on Wikipedia (positive report)
- SiteAdvisor's report on My Web Search (cautionary report)
- SiteAdvisor's report on KaZaA (negative report)
- SiteAdvisor's report on VToolbox (positive report with verified website owner and review comments added)
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