JANUARY 30, 2020
Antivirus (AV) software giant Avast has announced that it will wind down one of its subsidiary businesses just days after leaked documents revealed the extent to which the Czech company was selling users’ browsing data to third parties.
On Monday, Vice and PCMag published details of how Avast had been collating browsing data covering web properties such as Google Maps and Search, LinkedIn, and YouTube and then repackaging it for sale under a subsidiary called Jumpshot, which has claimed clients such as Google, Microsoft, Yelp, Pepsi, Home Depot, and Condé Nast. Although the data was not thought to contain any personally identifiable information, it is often possible to “de-anonymize” data by combining and aligning it with different data sets to unearth shared patterns.
Jumpshot was founded back in 2010 but officially launched from a Kickstarter-funded project in 2012. In its original guise, Jumpshot offered PC-based software that promised to rid machines of viruses, spyware, and the like, but the company was eventually bought by Avast.
According to the latest report, some Jumpshot clients paid millions of dollars for various products, including something called an “all clicks feed” that was apparently able to track user behavior such as clicks and movements between websites. For a company like Google — which has so far declined to comment on the report — this can significantly improve and measure targeted advertisements.
Avast has now said that it plans to “terminate its provision of data” to Jumpshot and will eventually pull the plug on the product altogether. This won’t impact Avast’s core products, but it will seemingly diminish a significant revenue-generating stream for the company.
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