Push notifications are useful until apps start treating them like free ad space. On Android, this gets especially annoying because promotional alerts are not always clearly separated from important notifications. Users often have to guess which setting controls ads, and many end up turning off notifications entirely just to stop the spam.
Samsung now appears to be addressing this issue with a new Device Care update that can detect and block apps that send too many promotional notifications.
CNET’s Download.com site has been embedding adware into the install process for all kinds of software, including open source software like NMAP. For the unwary, some of the ads could have been read to suggest accepting the advertised service (e.g., the Babylon translation tool bar) was part of the installation process. Users who weren’t paying attention may also have clicked “accept” simply by accident. In either event, after their next restart, they would have been surprised to find their settings had been changed, new tool bars installed, etc.
Dispatches From The Front 