Jumpshot data collection

A joint investigation by Motherboard and PCMag has shown that Avast, an antivirus, and cybersecurity company, has been collecting and selling "highly sensitive web browsing data" through Jumpshot. Jumpshot, a subsidiary company of Avast, was initially started in 2015 to extend Avast's data analytics capabilities. Suspected companies who have bought data from Jumpshot include Google, Microsoft, Yelp, Pepsi, and many more. Jumpshot was able to collect data through Avast's web extension, and software, which they reported to have more than 435 million active users a month, and is installed in more than 100 million devices. Fortunately, personal information such as the user's names were not included in the data collection. It is for those reasons that he and his board of directors have "decided to terminate the Jumpshot data collection and wind down Jumpshot's operations, with immediate effect." While the decision will impact hundreds of Jumpshot employees, Avast feels that this is the right thing to do. Read more in our articles including "Avast closes down data collecting subsidiary, apologizes to the public" and "OnePlus Watch Lite now official".