Home –> Computers –> Virus Hoaxes & Realities –> Snopes Funded By Adware
Money Over Integrity
Claim: Snopes serves popup ads from Value Click Media (FastClick) which encourage visitors to install adware from Zango (The Axis Of Evil).
Status: True.
Example: [Collected on the Interwebs, 2008]
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I am a big fan of Snopes, and use the service routinely when getting some typical hysterical email from a friend. But for a long time now (probably at least a year), I’ve noticed that they are in bed with Fastclick, which in turn constantly serves one annoying ad on Snopes:
That ad, “Do you want to block Junk Emails?” is for a Zango product — adware (VirusTotal report here). And by running this ad, Snopes, which is highly reputable, is providing an implied endorsement of the product. I contacted Snopes about six months ago to complain, but they ignored my message. |
I responded to Alex’s blog entry about this with the following:
Ouch. I’ve sent plenty of people their way over the years. This stinks the same as weight loss, penis enlargement, and other nonsense being allowed to make ad buys from Discovery, History Channel, etc.
“We are known to deal with facts and provide the best information possible.”
“Here’s a bunch of money. Let’s exploit that trust you’ve built up.”
“Hells yeah.”
Seriously:
What really pisses me off is that I know FastClick has category options for their publishers. And, I’d bet PaperGhost’s underoos that a site producing as many impressions as Snopes can get them to filter ads from their rotation. Bottom line: they aren’t idiots and are intentionally serving such ads on their site. It’s obviously all about the big bling bling for them.
Might as well find a similar site, with ethics:
Urban Legends (minus Snopes)
If you want to send Snopes a message about this mess, here’s their contact page.
Update:
You probably shouldn’t even bother contacting them. Here’s a thread on their own forum with members bitching about such practices from September of 2005. I saved a copy of that just in case they delete it ;-)
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11 brave souls have commented on this post
What ads? I been using firefox and adblock so long I never see things like that. And if per chance i do I try to fix it so that it doesn’t happen anymore. Anyway interesting post.
They are there. Your browser setup is preventing (saving) you from seeing them. This sort of ad isn’t effective on a typical FireFox user anyway. Such stuff only snags noobs, old people, etc.
You know, the people who always run to you for computer help.
“You know, the people who always run to you for computer help” so you see we still pay a cost for that kind of crap. lmao
Exactly…
Ugh! How frustrating. How saddening.
oh, by the way - I never get the chance to say this when I actually try to read your blog, but your page causes the barracuda filter to kick in at work. So apparently it’s not so “safe-for-work.”
This blog is safe for viewing at work. The mere mention of porn, tits, anal beads, hookers, and big bags of snowy blow is likely to set off filters though.
Does your filter pass moral judgement for you too?
/hehe
Maybe it has an aversion to the word “ghetto.” All’s I know is every time I try to go there from my RSS reader it tells me your site is blocked.
However, MySpace and all the whorebags within it are fair game.
Hmmm. I wonder if they got wind of your blog. I’m a regular user of snopes but haven’t had any issues because what my pop up blocker doesn’t catch I can get out of fairly easy.
I went there today to read a new store (I have their feed on my home page) and the pop ups appear to be gone. Hmmmm, indeed.
You are the master, sir. I wanna be a ninja when I grow up!
Snopes got SNOPED !
Alex Eckelberry said snopes.com is highly reputable in his complaint that snopes is funded by adware. Should I be doubtful of the truth from snopes as this e-mail suggest?
Subject: Doubt the truth from Fact Finder and Snopes!
The web sites Fact Finder and Snopes are funded in large part by moveon.org,
mainly funded by our good “friend” and Top Socialist DNC contributor
George Soros! Now I wonder why they debunked the Obama family tree article?
Americans working for Soros, debunking the truth to other Americans to further
the Soros .org groups cause! In times past they called these Americans “Traitors” and hung them! Sounds good to me! Hang’em high matey, yarrrr!
It came from George Soro’s mouth in an inteview on CNN as he toured Pier 39
in San Francisco last week. Now I know that doesn’t mean the webs are
knowingly answering unfactual when actually fact, BUT in any reasonable minded
persons back of their mind they would use these sites wth as much caution as
any other website like we have always heard from our peers,”You can’t believe everything you read on the web!”
I can’t believe it! Wasn’t that site started by one lady, who researched and wrote most of the entries herself? What does she think of all this? Did Zango feed her a line about what their stuff actually is, so she thinks they’re selling legit software, or is there something more sinister here?
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