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If you receive an E-Card with the subject line ""%recipient% you have an E-Card from %sender%" (where %recipient% and %sender% reflect the recipient's and sender's name, respectively), you might be getting more than just a friendly greeting. Some versions of this message contain a link to a page on the http://www.friendgreetings.com which might deliver more than you bargained for. The link downloads an ActiveX control to the system which then launches a setup program. Users must accept the installation and agree to the EULA (End User Licensing Agreement). Folks who don't routinely read EULAs before agreeing to the terms will be in for a nasty surprise. The card they are downloading is actually a mass-mailer, which will in turn email itself to all the contacts in their address book. Ironically, after this routine has been completed, it appears the user doesn't even receive the one thing they were after - the alleged card itself.

The EULA does not stop at just giving blanket permission to use your address book as their personal mailing list, it also includes language giving rights to push advertising to the user at will, and to "add additional features or functions to the version of PerMedia you install, or to add new applications to PerMedia, at any time." Further, the EULA prohibits any action which might prevent the application from going about its business - "You agree that you will not use any robot, spider, other automatic or manual device or process to interfere or attempt to interfere with the proper working of PerMedia." Some might construe this to mean users are prohibited from even uninstalling the spam application.

Friendgreetings.com is part of the collective web sites run by The Permissioned Media, Inc. Other sites run by PerMedia include cool-downloads.com and permissionedmedia.com. Each of these sites is governed by a privacy statement which at first read seems fairly benign. In fact, it clearly states, "No personal information is collected simply because you view or use any of The Web Sites.". Keep reading, though, and one phrase states that "If you receive advertising with Permedia branding, you are a Permedia user." in which case you are also bound to the terms of their EULA. Unlike their privacy statement, the EULA gives blanket rights to PerMedia to hold you and your system hostage to their advertising techniques, stating (in part), "By downloading, installing or using PerMedia, you agree to receive advertisements from Permissioned Media's business partners and associates. The ads will be interstitials ("pop-up and pop-under ads"), e-mail messages and in other formats. As more fully described in Permissioned Media's Privacy Statement, when you download, install or use PerMedia, Permissioned Media gathers personally identifiable information about you (such as your name and e-mail address). This information is used to select and deliver installation files for optional new PerMedia and/or third party software applications and to deliver advertisements in interstitals, e-mail and other formats to you."

Scary stuff.

There's an old saying in the computer industry - RTFM (Read The F'ing Manual). Guess a new one is needed, RTFE. Another option would be to avoid PerMedia sites altogether. Administrators can minimize the risk of unapproved software installations by blocking access to friendgreetings.com, cool-downloads.com and permissionedmedia.com. All users should pay close attention to licensing agreements and not install any software unless they fully understand and agree to the terms. Anyone who agrees to the terms of the PerMedia licensing agreement should also ask themselves whether their friends and contacts who will subsequently be spammed would also be in agreement. If that answer is no, the EULA should not be accepted.