Let's Talk About Spyware, Baybee

[Assmitten]

Okay, I have been hearing murmurings about spyware in Pets.

First: WTF? Assholes.

Okay, now that I have that off my chest, I was hoping we could talk about thwarting any spyware. I don't want to pay money for something that will report on me. That's what surveys are for. AssHOLES. 

Anyway, is this really for real? What can the average boob like me do to stop/remove this idiocy? Currently, I am using Ad-Aware SE, a free program. Is the typical cookie/spyware finder going to be enough? Is there a file we can rip out? Any other steps?

Also, it looks like Gaming Horizon reported on the spyware and then edited their article. Possibly at EA's request? When you do a google search for "sims 2 pets spyware" a Gaming Horizon article is the first result, but then I can find no mention of this on the site. But the google cache on the search results page shows something different. Otherwise I can turn up no other information about this.



Usually I expect corporations to fuck me gently with a chainsaw. But this is really chapping my ass. If I can confirm this, I am going to write EA a nasty letter. And then I am going to become a pirate. Bittorrent Ahoy!

[Venusy]

Apart from the phoning home (which can be easily fixed by blocking Sims2EP4.exe from connecting to the Internet), there is no other spyware in Pets. The spyware is contained within Battlefield 2142, another EA game. See the "Oh great..." thread in RL for more info.

[J. M. Pescado]

Phoning home *IS* spyware, Venusy.

[Venusy]

Phoning home *IS* spyware, Venusy.

Yes, I accidentally omitted the word "other".

[nectere]

I use a fairly simple free product called Zonealarm which tells me when something is attempting to access the internet for any reasona and allows me to block it "this time" or block "always"

[Jelenedra]

How do you block programs from phoning home?

[MxxPwr]

How do you block programs from phoning home?

Firewall

[Jelenedra]

Well, yes, duh. But they were taking about making a specific block to TS2EP4.

[J. M. Pescado]

Well, yes, duh. But they were taking about making a specific block to TS2EP4.

It varies from firewall to firewall. Most Windoze firewalls will honk when a new program tries to access the Internet. This is when you say HELL NO WE WON'T GO.

[MxxPwr]

Well, yes, duh. But they were taking about making a specific block to TS2EP4.

It varies from firewall to firewall. Most Windoze firewalls will honk when a new program tries to access the Internet. This is when you say HELL NO WE WON'T GO.

What JM said. And, if you think it passed you by and you allowed it without realizing, then you should be able to 'view allowed' on just about any firewall program and check it to block.

[J. M. Pescado]

If that has already happened, it's too late. They know everything about you already and are coming to get you.

[ZiggyDoodle]

I checked my program control in ZoneAlarm Pro and saw The Sims 2 EP3 listed. I have ZAP set so that any program attempting to access the 'Net has to ask my permission first, but I think I'll reset the TS2 options to "ARE YOU CRAZY? ABSOLUTELY NOT!" or something similar.

On the other hand, Picasa is listed too.

Use a good firewall (such as ZAP or the free version, not Windoze), set your preferences according to the level of your paranoia, and you should be relatively safe.

[J. M. Pescado]

It's not paranoia when they really are out to get you.

[Weaver]

Just a note that the in-game content browser will not be available should you forbid all internet access to The Sims 2 executables.
Sufficient allowed permissions for Sims2/Sims2EPx.exe Exchange access would be TCP outgoing server connections on port 80.
This allows the program to obtain web pages through the HTTP protocol and possibly download the Sims2Pack files.

Always be sure on the authenticity of software providers and common sense on questioning whether an application requires internet-access.

I personally have never used the content browser or autoPatch updates and prefer good old fashioned manual browsing.
Routers make great physical hardware firewalls and are commonly able to filter network traffic efficiently.

[KevinTMC]

Now here is where hackers could actually perform a public service for once.

Shouldn't it be possible to hack things so that the "phone-home" data is loaded with some...er...less-than-friendly code?

After all, in Soviet Russia, end-user spywares you!

[KatEnigma]

Even the stock SP2 Windows XP firewall will prevent TS2 from phoning home. Just remove it from your Exceptions list. I think it does add it to the list automagically now, because I haven't seen the amount of whiney sheep complaining that they can't upload to the Exchange lately. (I used to C&P instructions to add it to the list 20 times a day)

So yeah, BTW, you also won't be able to upload to the exchange if you don't let TS2 through the firewall.  Most here probably don't care, but it's still something to remember.

As for the rest, it's not like the autoupdate actually updates anything. All it does is pop up and you to tell you there's an update available, and then closes down the game and opens up your browser to the download page. 

[dizzy]

Now here is where hackers could actually perform a public service for once.

Shouldn't it be possible to hack things so that the "phone-home" data is loaded with some...er...less-than-friendly code?

After all, in Soviet Russia, end-user spywares you!

Yes, it is possible. In theory. Making pigs fly is also possible, but don't count on it. 

The problem really lies in the fact that EA's spyware sits in your kernel-level memory doing who-knows what. So, unless you know how and when specifically the phoning home works, you are simply not safe.

Bottom line: a firewall will not prevent EA from spying on you. At a bare minimum, you need a proxy and a white list. Or you can do what I do: pull the plug altogether.

[MxxPwr]

Just a note that the in-game content browser will not be available should you forbid all internet access to The Sims 2 executables.
Sufficient allowed permissions for Sims2/Sims2EPx.exe Exchange access would be TCP outgoing server connections on port 80.
This allows the program to obtain web pages through the HTTP protocol and possibly download the Sims2Pack files.

Always be sure on the authenticity of software providers and common sense on questioning whether an application requires internet-access.

I personally have never used the content browser or autoPatch updates and prefer good old fashioned manual browsing.
Routers make great physical hardware firewalls and are commonly able to filter network traffic efficiently.

...like a Hoover. 

[simmiecal]

Just a note that the in-game content browser will not be available should you forbid all internet access to The Sims 2 executables.
Sufficient allowed permissions for Sims2/Sims2EPx.exe Exchange access would be TCP outgoing server connections on port 80.
This allows the program to obtain web pages through the HTTP protocol and possibly download the Sims2Pack files.

Always be sure on the authenticity of software providers and common sense on questioning whether an application requires internet-access.

I personally have never used the content browser or autoPatch updates and prefer good old fashioned manual browsing.
Routers make great physical hardware firewalls and are commonly able to filter network traffic efficiently.

...like a Hoover. 

I agree.  Wasn't sure if anyone else saw the "coded" message. Although I would add an "s" at the end.   

[dawnkeeper]

If that has already happened, it's too late. They know everything about you already and are coming to get you.

Ah crap. No choice now.... *moves to a small island off the coast of Africa*

[KevinTMC]

Ah crap. No choice now.... *moves to a small island off the coast of Africa*

They're already waiting for you on the island. Remember: they know everything already.

Better pick a new hiding place. And fast...hear those black helicopters approaching?

[OpiumGirl]

What exactly would EA be looking for when phoning home?  What kind of information would they be sending or the like?  Does anyone have even a basic idea why they would do this?
I actually, very stupidly, ordered the downloadable version of Pets, and now everytime I open the game EA makes me connect and "login" to play the stupid thing.  Does anyone know of a way around this?  I mean, I bought it and it has all of my registration data in my computer.....
Now, I really wish I had just gone and bought the boxed version after I've been reading all of this stuff about Spyware. I freely offered up my computer and connection to them, unwittingly, by buying it this way.....I bent over and took a type of spyware that I now NEED to play my game!
EEEK
 

[KatEnigma]

To get around the idiot downloader starting up, you need to happen upon the executable file that people are using who didn't dowload it quite so legally. 

Then save the idiot DRM one in a safe place, so you can pop it back in when you want to install the next Lies and Propaganda pack (and maybe for patches).  I tracked down a new executable for GLS because of that. I'd downloaded the HP, and it was fine- no DRM crap, but now they are all paranoid and pissy about it, so never again.

[Maria]

The problem really lies in the fact that EA's spyware sits in your kernel-level memory doing who-knows what. So, unless you know how and when specifically the phoning home works, you are simply not safe.

Bottom line: a firewall will not prevent EA from spying on you. At a bare minimum, you need a proxy and a white list. Or you can do what I do: pull the plug altogether.

I don't know much about computers, so I don't understand why a firewall wouldn't be able to block EA's spyware?  I have The Sims 2 and all of its expansions listed as blocked in the Program Control section of ZoneAlarm, and under Alerts & Logs it says that it blocked the Sims from sending data out this afternoon (darn thing tried four times!).  After reading your post I looked at the ZoneAlarm support pages and they do say that it monitors the kernel-level (that's for version 6.5 though, so it may be new).

[dizzy]

Network drivers are hooked in at the kernel level. That's how a firewall works. It intercepts messages sent to the network driver. This is also how kernel-level spyware works.

It isn't safe to assume that software firewalls are doing precisely what you tell them. It probably is, but I can only say that with 90% assurance.