Not happy with this: Symantec partners with Ask.com
Together, Ask.com and Symantec developed Safe Search, a new offering that makes searching the Web safer by providing users with ratings before they visit a site that could damage or infect their PC. Safe Search delivers site ratings embedded directly into the search experience, so that users can conduct searches directly from their Norton toolbar and see site ratings presented on a customized search results page. Safe Search, with search powered by Ask.com, is now available with Norton Safe Web as part of the Norton 360 version 3.0 public beta. Norton Safe Web is a Web site rating service introduced in beta by Symantec in August 2008.
Safe Search is currently available in English only, and is included with Norton Safe Web as part of the Norton 360 version 3.0 public beta, which can be downloaded at www.norton.com/360v3beta. Additional details regarding the availability of Safe Search with other Norton offerings will be announced at a later date.
http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.jsp?prid=20090203_01
Dear Symantec,
Please we say no to Ask.com toolbar. I hope the questionable dll or toolbar by Ask is not there in your product.
Many people do not like the Ask Toolbar especially if Ben Edelman still feel that Ask Toolbar is not recommended. Let’s hope you don’t use the ask toolbar. If you will use the Ask search service only then that’s another story that users will think about. Opera and other browsers include Ask.com search in their browser but I personally “delete” that search service. Microsoft do not have Ask.com search service as search engines/service for IE to use. It’s up to the user to add which search engine/service to use in addition to theirs. Give users choice please…
Why not just partner with Google Search, Microsoft Windows Live Search or Yahoo Search?
Why provide toolbar where no toolbar is necessary? Why suddenly the bloody toolbar is needed to make your product work in detecting malware in PCs or help people to be protected?
Why you are not listening to the research done by Ben Edelman. Ben said already that the search by Ask is providing dubious ads!
You are security company that should be ON TOP of what should be avoided. You should listen to customers. No toolbar to security products. That’s so SIMPLE request that we are asking.
See the discussion at CoU forums. Note: not going to promote Symantec products anymore.
Please see: http://www.calendarofupdates.com/updates/index.php?showtopic=16253
Edit to add: Guys, sorry for the confusion on this (I received email/PM that there are confused users). Yes, it is not the Ask toolbar in Norton products because the tool bar is the Norton Safe Web toolbar that has been in Beta since August 2008 or maybe earlier (but who knows why they have that before and now suddenly the partnership). The problem with Symantec/Ask Partnership:
- Norton Safe Web is already going to help users by rating your searches (whatever search service) without ASK Safe Search. There is NO need for Symantec to add Ask.com Safe Search within their toolbar to direct users in using Ask. This is the same partnership that Ask have with Comodo, ZoneAlarm, Webroot, Stopzilla etc. You can check the website or forum of those companies and you will see that almost everyone do not like Ask.com search added in a suddenly crucial part of the antivirus, firewall, antispyware – via their toolbar or whoever developed the toolbar.
- Symantec once detects Ask stuff in their detection signatures and to see a security company in partnering to another business name that have bad record is odd. Other security companies who partnered with Ask has been detecting Ask dll, installer or toolbar but they decided to NOT detect it any longer AFTER they made the deal/partnership. Some lower the bar but continue to detect few items. It’s maybe low risk but since it’s still allowing bad practice then it is still require detection or warning to users by their anti-virus and anti-malware programs.
- Symantec decided long time ago to REMOVE many of its nice features in Norton Internet Security product line and they decided to create Norton Add-on Pack where the REMOVE features can still be installed by the user for free but the user have to download the Add-on Pack. Next, comes the Norton Safe Web which is another plug-in by Symantec. I was expecting that Symantec will include this in the Add-on pack or remain standalone toolbar and free service. To my SUPRISED, they decided to partner with Ask.com which many of us avoid a long time ago! By allowing Ask.com to be in Norton Safe Web toolbar beta.
- Symantec said to its users before that they removed the many features in Norton Internet Security 2007 and put it as Add-on pack to make their product lighter. I was happy that it’s OPTIONAL to add other features of Norton but now, they want Norton Safe Web as included in the Norton 360 just because of their odd partnership with ASK?