Zango accused of cheating on legal settlement

Zango agreed to pay a $3m fine for 'unfair and deceptive' practices

Adware maker Zango has not complied with the terms of a November settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), security researchers claim. 

Zango agreed in early November to pay a $3m fine for the "unfair and deceptive" methods of distributing its adware. 

Under the terms of the agreement, the adware maker was required to stop serving advertisements to older versions of its application.

It also had to clearly identify pop-up ads served to users, and to obtain consent from users before the software could be installed.

Zango claimed at the time that it had been in compliance with the new rules since the beginning of this year.

But spyware researchers Ben Edelman and Eric Howes charged that the violations have continued throughout the year and after the settlement went into effect.

The researchers have called on the FTC to make Zango retract its claim of compliance with the settlement.

"Bad practices continue at Zango, practices that, in our judgment, put Zango in violation of the key terms and requirements of the FTC settlement," the two wrote in a blog posting. 

Edelman and Howes offered screen shots and video captures of Zango software acting in violation of the FTC settlement terms.

The Zango application serves pop-up ads and monitors internet usage. The software is bundled with content such as games and movie clips that in some cases are posted on social media websites such as MySpace and Google's Orkut.

A spokesman for Zango told vnunet.com that it is reviewing the report and is "working diligently to meet and exceed every single one of the requirements set forth by the FTC".

In addition to Edelman and Howes, the Center for Democracy and Technology filed a comment with the FTC, recommending that compliance is closely monitored and enforced. 

The FTC settlement is open for public comment until 5 December. Comments should be addressed to the FTC, Office of the Secretary, Room H-135, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580.

• Zango fined $3m for illegal adware installations