It has long been said that AOL routinly invades its users privacy... Well here is more proof. I was looking through some AIM packets, just for fun, and I noticed among other things that, directly after the Client sends your Buddy Info, it sends this.
xnemisisx2..Windows 2000.5.0.2195Intel Pentium/Microsoft Corporation:Windows Socket 32-Bit DLL.5.00.2152.1
Now, does AOL really need to know what kind of OS you are running? Or you DLL's? I think not. The same information is present when you send a bug report...
I was messing around with the 'Report a Bug' feature in AIM, when I noticed too major diffrences in the information that is being sent.
If you send the bug report from the AIM website (www.AIM.com) the header looks basicly like this...
http://www.aim.aol.com/cgi-bin/bugs.cgi?ver=beta&plat=nl + whatever information you enter into the bug report form. Goto http://www.aim.aol.com/cgi-bin/bugs.cgi? too see this form.
If you use the AIM Feature 'Report A Bug' (help window - report a bug) Then AIM takes the liberty of adding a good amount of information about you and your system to the header. Mine looks like this..
http://www.aim.aol.com/cgi-bin/bugs.cgi?ver=beta&num=4.7.2480&plat=Windows+2000&type=WIN32&screenname=xnemisisx2&warning=0&WinSock=Microsoft+Corporation:Windows+Socket+32-Bit+DLL:5.00.2152.1:&DistChannel=159&Language=ENU
As you can see, it automaticly adds the version, the OS, the enviorment, your winsock version, information on your DLL's, and your language...BUT what is most interesting is that it also sends your screenname, and...Warning level. Now, most of the information that it automaticly adds to the header when you click on the 'Report a Bug' Feature, AOL asks for when you fill the form out Directly from there site. But no where on that form does it ask for your screenname and warning level.
And I ask myself Why? Why would AOL want someone's screenname and warning level? I can think of a few reasons, and all of them could be wrong, so I wont even venture a guess, this is just another example of AOL invading peoples privacy, and thats that.