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March 9, 2005
Google Desktop API - Potential For Spyware
I have concerns about the potential for problems with spyware making use of the power of the new Google desktop engine via the APIs now available to collect all kinds of information and use it for destructive purposes.
I'm too paranoid to load the engine on my machine for reasons of privacy (although I've seen at work on) but I can only imagine how nicely indexed content will make it easy for spyware to report on all kinds of private user information.
Most spyware isn't sophisticated enough to really comb through a users machine for much beyond a few targeted things i.e. an address book or the like.
But hand a malicious application a whole harvest of information out of a user's email file, they are going to find passwords for transaction accounts, password reminder emails, usernames and password for domain records, etc. The possibilities for problems are as endless as the lowest common denominator of how well users can manage the security of their machine.
I wonder how long it will be until something like this is exploited.
Posted by Derek Leverington at March 9, 2005 12:28 AM