Abhinov's tech commentary: Scareware

Scareware are popup advertisements which warn consumers that their PCs are at risk. Usually, the UI of the ads blend well with that of the operating system. When fooled by such scams, consumers often pay for tools that fix largely problems that never existed on their PCs. These tools are rarely needed and seldom perform any useful functions. So Microsoft and the attorney-general of Washington State on Monday announced that they are teaming up to curb the spread of scareware.

Scareware vendors are violating Washington State's anti-spyware law, which states that it is illegal to deceive computer users and misrepresent the state of a user's PC. They also violate the Consumer Protection Act, a law which supports unlimited damages. Defendants face penalties of up to $2,000 per violation.

Examples of offenders are Branch Software and AlphaRed, companies that market a scareware product called Registry Cleaner XP. Microsoft said that it was prepping lawsuits against several other companies outside of Washington for similar violations. One such company is called Registry Update.