Definitions vary, but I once wrote these notes for the definition in a security policy. It is probably more broad than what some people would write.
Malware
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- Any software that actively attempts to do any of the following:
- Do harm to the system, applications or data
- Deliberately weakens system security
- By changing system or user security settings
- Contains or installs backdoors
- Downloads updates as executables
- Use executables to wrap otherwise readable data
- Expects higher or more privileges than is needed by it's function.
- Circumvent the wishes or intention of the user
- Makes it self the default application for file-types that already have an application assigned to them
- Inserts itself into other applications against the users expectation (eg. as a plugin)
- Uses the privileges of other applications to circumvent system policy
- Hide its activity from inspection
- Anti-debugging, and other rootkit like behaviour
- Use "dark patterns" to trick the user into performing or agreeing to some action
- Installs toolbars, etc.
- Compromise the privacy of the user
- Phones home, access data irrelevant to it's function
- Resists removal
It does not compromise the user's privacy in any way. GA prohibits PII. Also, the webmaster has to opt-in to share the data with Google in the first place.
People just LOOVE to be outraged. For example in this thread people rage about google getting hands on their data. When I point out that the webmaster has to explicitly chose to share the data with google, I get downvoted. When I say that GA prohibits the use of PII, I get downvoted. It doesn't matter that I'm right. People WANT to be outraged. Reason, no reason, doesn't matter.
