New York AG Spitzer Labels Intermix “Spyware” in Lawsuit   - 1,549 Views,

New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has sued online marketing company Intermix, claiming that Intermix has been distributing spyware to unsuspecting users, and that users visiting the Intermix site would end up with ad-serving pop-ups displayed on their computers, or having their computers redirected to another website, often without th user’s knowledge.

Said Spitzer, “Spyware and adware are more than an annoyance. These fraudulent programs foul machines, undermine productivity and in many cases frustrate consumers’ efforts to remove them from their computers. These issues can serve to be a hindrance to the growth of e-commerce.”

The lawsuit could become an important test case, with Spitzer being the first, but surely not the last, to take a company to court over spyware practices, which are nearly as universally hated as they are ubiquitous.

In response to the lawsuit, Intermix’s in-house counsel and Senior Vice President said that “Intermix does not promote or condone spyware,” adding that “Many of the practices being challenged were instituted under prior leadership … In an abundance of caution, we voluntarily ceased distribution of the applications at issue earlier this month.”

Apparently although Intermix wants your bucks, they don’t stop there.