Spyware charge levelled at Lexmark

[ayoub_ibrahim]

Allegations have been swirling around an online newsgroup this week that printer manufacturer Lexmark has been installing spyware on its customers' computers.



Reports on the comp.periphs.printers Usenet newsgroup claim that Lexmark has been planting spyware on its customers' PCs in the form of undocumented software that monitors the use of its printers and silently reports back to a Lexmark-owned company website.


One user said that after initially denying the allegations, Lexmark acknowledged installing tracking software that reported printer and cartridge use back to the company for survey purposes. He claimed that Lexmark said no personal data was taken by the program, and that it was impossible to identify anyone by it.


However, users installing the software are prompted to fill in a registration form including their name and the serial number of the product.

http://software.silicon.com/malware/0,3800003100,39125876,00.htm

[rugger]

I honestly don't know why anyone buys any lexmark inkjet products.

They are generally low quality, poorly built and very expensive to run printers.

[Technoid]

1. they are super cheap, most people never thinks about how expensive the ink are.
2. They are the number 1 favorite to bundle in computer packages.

[High_Jumbllama]

And that is why we have three of them though once the fourth broke I replaced it with an HP.

[Wombat]

Originally posted by rugger
I honestly don't know why anyone buys any lexmark inkjet products.

They are generally low quality, poorly built and very expensive to run printers.

Don't forget that Dell printers are Lexmarks.