| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident related to unauthorized tracking by browser extensions has happened before at Google's Chrome Web Store. McAfee researchers previously spotted imposter Netflix party Chrome extensions that redirected users to phishing sites and stole personal information, although they were installed a combined 100,000 times [131593].
(b) The incident of malicious browser extensions tracking user activity has also occurred with other organizations or their products and services. McAfee researchers highlighted that keeping malicious extensions out completely is a challenging task, indicating that similar incidents may have occurred with extensions from other providers as well [131593]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase can be seen in the case of the Chrome extensions mentioned in Article 131593. The extensions were designed to offer functionalities such as watching Netflix shows together, tracking deals on retail sites, and taking screenshots of websites. However, in addition to their intended functions, these extensions were also tracking users' browser activity without their knowledge. This design flaw introduced by the extension creators led to a privacy risk where every website visited by the user was sent to the extension's creators, allowing them to insert code into e-commerce sites for affiliate payments [131593].
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase can be observed in the misuse of the Chrome extensions by users. Despite the extensions being downloaded a combined 1.4 million times, users were unaware of the tracking functionality embedded in these extensions. This lack of awareness and the operation of the extensions by users unknowingly allowed their browser activities to be tracked and shared with the extension authors, leading to potential privacy breaches and misuse of user data [131593]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident in this case falls under the within_system category. The Chrome extensions mentioned in the article were designed to perform specific functions like watching Netflix shows together or tracking deals on retail sites. However, in addition to their intended functions, these extensions were also surreptitiously tracking users' online activities without their knowledge. This behavior was a direct result of the design and implementation of the extensions themselves, making it a failure originating from within the system [131593].
(b) outside_system: The software failure incident does not fall under the outside_system category as there is no indication in the article that external factors beyond the control of the software or its developers contributed to the failure. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions, human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident related to non-human actions occurred in the case of the Chrome extensions that were tracking user browser activity without their knowledge. The extensions were surreptitiously tracking online activities of users, sending every website visited to the extension's creator without the users' awareness. This tracking behavior was a result of the extensions' code, which was designed to insert code into e-commerce sites visited by users to allow the extension authors to receive affiliate payments for items purchased by the users [131593].
(b) The software failure incident related to human actions involved the removal of the five Chrome extensions by Google from its Chrome Web Store after outside cybersecurity researchers identified the malicious behavior of the extensions. The extensions were developed with the intention to track user browser activity without their consent, indicating a deliberate action by the extension authors to engage in such privacy-invading behavior. The human action of creating and distributing these extensions led to their removal from the store by Google following the researchers' findings [131593]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident related to hardware:
- The incident reported in the article does not specifically mention any hardware-related failures. It focuses on malicious Chrome extensions tracking user browser activity without their knowledge, which is more related to software vulnerabilities and privacy risks rather than hardware issues [131593].
(b) The software failure incident related to software:
- The software failure incident in the article is primarily related to software issues. The Chrome extensions mentioned were designed to track user browser activity without their consent, indicating a software-related failure in terms of privacy breaches and unauthorized data collection [131593]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
malicious |
(a) The objective of the software failure incident was malicious. McAfee researchers identified five Chrome extensions that were surreptitiously tracking user browser activity without their knowledge. These extensions were designed to track users' online activities and send the data to the extension authors, allowing them to insert code into e-commerce sites for affiliate payments. The extensions were removed from the Chrome Web Store after being downloaded a combined 1.4 million times [131593].
(b) The software failure incident was non-malicious. The incident involved the removal of several imposter Netflix party Chrome extensions earlier in the year, which redirected users to phishing sites and stole personal information. Although these extensions were not explicitly mentioned in the context of malicious intent, their actions of redirecting users to phishing sites and stealing personal information indicate a non-malicious failure [131593]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
(a) The intent of the software failure incident related to poor_decisions:
The software failure incident of the Chrome extensions tracking user browser activity without their knowledge can be attributed to poor decisions made by the extension creators. The extensions were designed to track users' online activities without their consent, sending data to the extension authors for potential affiliate payments. This decision to include such tracking functionality without transparently informing users about it led to the removal of the extensions from the Chrome Web Store by Google [131593].
(b) The intent of the software failure incident related to accidental_decisions:
The software failure incident does not seem to be related to accidental decisions. Instead, it appears to be a deliberate action by the extension creators to track user data without their knowledge for financial gain. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is evident in the case of the Chrome extensions mentioned in Article 131593. McAfee researchers discovered that five Chrome extensions were tracking user browser activity without their knowledge. These extensions were downloaded a combined 1.4 million times before Google removed them from its store. The extensions, which were designed to offer functionalities like watching Netflix shows together and tracking deals on retail sites, also surreptitiously tracked users' online activities. This behavior indicates a lack of professional competence by the extension developers, as they included tracking functionalities without users' consent or knowledge, posing a significant privacy risk [131593].
(b) The software failure incident related to accidental factors is seen in the case of the malicious Chrome extensions mentioned in Article 131593. The extensions, which were initially designed to provide legitimate functionalities such as watching Netflix shows together and tracking deals on retail sites, ended up tracking users' browser activity without their explicit consent. This unintended consequence of the extensions' behavior, where they sent every website a user visited to the extension's creator for potential affiliate payments, can be considered an accidental introduction of tracking features that compromised user privacy [131593]. |
| Duration |
permanent |
(a) The software failure incident in the articles can be categorized as a permanent failure. The Chrome extensions identified by McAfee researchers were surreptitiously tracking user browser activity without their knowledge, leading to a privacy risk for users. These extensions were downloaded a significant number of times (1.4 million) before being removed from the Chrome Web Store by Google [131593]. This indicates that the failure was ongoing and persistent until the extensions were taken down, rather than being a one-time or temporary issue. |
| Behaviour |
value, other |
(a) crash: The software failure incident reported in the article does not involve a crash where the system loses state and does not perform any of its intended functions. The Chrome extensions in question were actively tracking user browser activity while still providing the promised functionalities [131593].
(b) omission: The software failure incident does not involve omission where the system omits to perform its intended functions at an instance(s). The extensions in question were performing additional unauthorized tracking alongside their stated functionalities [131593].
(c) timing: The software failure incident does not involve timing issues where the system performs its intended functions correctly but too late or too early. The extensions were actively tracking user activities in real-time without any delay mentioned in the article [131593].
(d) value: The software failure incident does involve a failure related to the system performing its intended functions incorrectly. The Chrome extensions were tracking user browser activity without their knowledge, which was not the intended function of the extensions [131593].
(e) byzantine: The software failure incident does not involve a byzantine failure where the system behaves erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. The behavior of the extensions was consistent in tracking user activities without deviation [131593].
(f) other: The software failure incident involves a failure where the system behaves in a way not described in the options (a to e). The extensions were designed to provide certain functionalities like watching Netflix shows together or tracking deals on retail sites, but they also secretly tracked user browser activity for additional purposes like inserting code into e-commerce sites for affiliate payments [131593]. |