GFI apologises for incorrect spyware detection on Samsung laptops

Electronics major Samsung has received the clean chit against allegations of carrying secret spyware to monitor users' activity on its laptops, after the software vendor whose antivirus had detected the spyware said it was a case of a ''false positive.''

In a blog posting on Thursday, GFI that markets VIPRE antivirus software apologised for the error, saying Samsung laptops do not have a keylogger. 

The blog went on to explain that its antivirus had mistaken a Slovenian language pack for Windows for StarLogger, a commercial product that secretly records keystrokes and screenshots and sends them to a remote observer. 

GFI said that the detection was based off a VIPRE detection method, which uses folder paths to detect malware. In this case, installation of either package could create a folder called ''SL'' in the Windows directory, which led to the confusion. 

A Network World report on Monday by Toronto-based researcher Mohamed Hassan had said Samsung was secretly pre-installing spyware on its laptops. 

Late Thursday afternoon, Samsung had responded, saying the allegations were baseless. 

''Our findings indicate that the person mentioned in the article used a security program called VIPRE [antivirus software] that mistook a folder created by Microsoft Live Application for ... key logging software, during a virus scan,'' said Samsung.