Is Alexa toolbar spyware?

I have asked my site members to think about installing the Alexa toolbar and they responded with shock, that I would ask them to install 'spyware'. Can someone tell me how I should react? Is it bad? - I didn't think so, but some are not convinced.

 

there is many topic about this please read them . an example : http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=166727

 

Thanks heaps. I really appreciate it!

Cindy

 

thanks for the link!

 

I heard this before and so I suspected but Alexa must be trustable company.

 

never heard anything like it before, they have been around a long time and im sure i would have heard about it a while ago if they were. Intresting storys though i'll keep my ears open

 

As far as I'm concerned, the Alexa toolbar does send the websites you visit to their server. Then it is used in the ("Alexa") ranking of all websites. But I'm quite confident they don't use this information to relate it to you.

 

This is pretty much how I see it too, at least I hope that's how it is.

 

Thanks for your suggestions and pointing me in the right direction. I still am unsure of how to go about using this information. I think it's probably pretty safe - but I guess you never know? I am going to keep using it, but I am also going to point my members in the direction of this thread,so that they can also get the dp perspective on things too.

Cindy