In summary, Bonzi Buddy keeps you informed of late breaking news, organizes the internet the way you want it, makes you smile throughout your day with the little monkey personality, educates people of all ages with its wealth of knowledge and trivia, makes your computer and the internet easier, safer, and definitely more fun, and has the. Aug 18, 2017 Third-party developer BONZI Software used Peedy as the first version of its standalone helper program “BonziBUDDY.” Microsoft had intended these assistants to be bundled with other programs, but Bonzi’s assistant was designed to help with everything. BonziBuddy, sometimes called Bonzi Buddy, Bonzibuddy, BonziBuddy, or BONZIBuddy:. The software provides an on-screen software agent designed to help users surf the Internet by using Microsoft Agent technology. Bonzi Buddy can do /anything/. All you have to do, is ask the right question. Download Bonzi Buddy The Purple Monkey. Update Page (Last Updated Version) Welcome to the BONZI Software Update page! These updates are free to all existing users and it will automatically install the latest version onto your computer.
| Developer(s) | Bonzi Software, Inc. |
|---|---|
| Initial release | 2000 |
| Stable release | 4.1 / 2005 |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows |
| Type | Adware, spyware, malware |
| License | Freeware |
| Website | bonzi.com (discontinued) |
BonziBuddy, stylized as BonziBUDDY, (pronounced /bɒnzibʌdiː/BON-zee-bud-ee) was a freeware desktop virtual assistant made by Joe and Jay Bonzi. Upon a user's choice, it would share jokes and facts, manage downloads, sing songs, and talk, among other functions.[1] Some versions of the software were described as spyware[2] and adware.[3]
The software used Microsoft Agent technology similar to Office Assistant,[4] and originally sported Peedy, a green parrot and one of the characters available with Microsoft Agent. Later versions of BonziBuddy in May 2000 featured its own character: Bonzi, the purple gorilla.[5] The program also used a text-to-speech voice to interact with the user. The voice was called Sydney and taken from an old Lernout & Hauspie Microsoft Speech API 4.0 package. It is often referred to in some software as Adult Male #2.
BonziBuddy was discontinued in 2004 after the company behind it faced lawsuits regarding the software and was ordered to pay fines.[6] Bonzi's website remained open after the discontinuation of BonziBuddy, but was shut down at the end of 2008.
Criticism[edit]
In April 2007, PC World readers voted BonziBuddy the sixth on a list named 'The 20 Most Annoying Tech Products'. One reader was quoted as criticizing the program because it 'kept popping up and obscuring things you needed to see'.[7]
One of the last newspaper articles written about BonziBuddy while it was still in distribution described it as spyware and a 'scourge of the Internet'.[8] Another article found in 2006 on the BusinessWeek website described BonziBuddy as 'the unbelievably annoying spyware trojan horse'.[9]
Spyware[edit]
A number of sources identify BonziBuddy as spyware, a claim the company disputed.[10] In 2002, an article in Consumer ReportsWeb Watch labelled BonziBuddy as spyware, stating that it contains a backdoor trojan that collects information from users. The activities the program is said to engage in include constantly resetting the user's web browserhomepage to bonzi.com without the user's permission, prompting and tracking various information about the user, installing a toolbar, and serving advertisements.[11]
Trend Micro and Symantec have both classified the software as adware.[12][13][14]Spyware Guide's entry on the program also states that it is adware.[15]
Legal issues[edit]
Internetnews.com reported the settlement of a class action suit on 27 May 2003. Originally brought against Bonzi Software on 4 December 2002, the suit accused Bonzi of using its banner advertisements to deceptively imitate Windows computer alerts, alerting the user that their IP address is being broadcast. In the settlement, Bonzi Software agreed to modify their ads so that they looked less like Windows dialog boxes and more like actual advertisements.[16][17]
On February 18, 2004, the Federal Trade Commission released a statement indicating that Bonzi Software, Inc. was ordered to pay $75,000 in fees, among other aspects, for violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act by collecting personal information from children under the age of 13 with BonziBuddy.[18]
Other software[edit]
Bonzi also made other software such as Internet Alert '99 and Internet Boost '99.
Internet Alert '99 claims to have some hidden Windows features to protect your computer. It also allows you to simulate an Internet attacking your computer. Internet Boost '99 claims to supercharge your computer by speeding up your Internet connection. Voice E-Mail also allows you to add music and sound effects to emails.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^'BonziBUDDY!'. bonzi.com. Bonzi Software, Inc. Archived from the original on 21 June 2000.
- ^Geschwind, Bill (11 August 2004). 'AppNote: Automating the installation and execution of Spybot Search & Destroy with ZENworks'. Novell Cool Solutions. Novell. Retrieved 14 July 2007.
Hotbar, Bonzi Buddy, Gator eWallet and Comet Cursors ... are all spyware-laden programs that I have encountered far too often in the field on my users' machine
- ^'BonziBuddy'. www.spywareguide.com. Retrieved 2019-02-26.
- ^Hachman, Mark (28 May 2003). ''Bonzi Buddy' Creator Settles Suit'. ExtremeTech. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 7 September 2006.
- ^'Counter Spy's entry on BonziBuddy'. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 7 September 2006.
- ^Ravenscraft, Eric (18 August 2017). 'A Brief History of BonziBuddy, the Internet's Most Friendly Malware'. How-To Geek. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
- ^'The 20 Most Annoying Tech Products'. PCWorld. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
- ^Kladko, Brian (21 March 2004). 'Prying Eyes Lurk Inside Your PC; Spyware Spawns Efforts at Control'. The Gale Group, Inc. Retrieved 16 November 2007.
- ^'Breaking: MySpace Backlash Sighted In Mainstream Media!'. Businessweek. Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 16 November 2007.
- ^'BonziBuddy'. Spyware Loop. 16 July 2013. Archived from the original on 28 April 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
- ^Barrett, Robertson (21 November 2002). 'Five Major Categories of Spyware'. Consumer Reports. Consumers Union of U.S. Archived from the original on 9 January 2006. Retrieved 7 September 2006.
- ^'ADW_BONJING.A'. trendmicro.com. Trend Micro. 8 July 2004. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007.
- ^'ADW_BONZIBUDDY.C'. Threat Encyclopedia. Trend Micro. 8 June 2004. Retrieved 14 July 2007.
- ^'Adware.Bonzi'. symantec.com. Symantec. 13 February 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2009.
- ^'BonziBuddy'. Spyware Guide. Actiance. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^Morrissey, Brian (27 May 2003). 'Bonzi Settles Deceptive Ad Suit'. internetnews.com. QuinStreet. Archived from the original on 6 June 2003. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^Morrissey, Brian (4 December 2002). 'Bonzi Hit With Deceptive-Ad Complaint'. internetnews.com. QuinStreet. Archived from the original on 18 June 2003. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^Schwartzman, Jen (18 February 2004). 'UMG Recordings, Inc. to Pay $400,000, Bonzi Software, Inc. To Pay $75,000 to Settle COPPA Civil Penalty Charges'. ftc.gov. Federal Trade Commission. Retrieved 12 September 2017.