Sorry to ask, but this whole Zango on Facebook thing...

...yeah, you knew it was coming sooner or later.

Like everyone else, I went "ooooh" when I first heard about this. For those who don't know, an application on Facebook - when you installed it - "installed Zango spyware" (according to the numerous writeups), meaning the Zango Adware was the final destination, the main reason, for making this application in the first place.

However, Zango came out swinging with their latest blog post and also claimed they have no affiliation with the makers of the Secret Crush application, which seems a little odd considering the maker of the application would have no direct incentive to install their Adware if they didn't have an account with them.

They also posted up a screenshot that seems to show the application merely showing randomly selected adverts - not just an advert for Zango.

If that's the case, then this whole thing just puzzles me because it immediately looks more like

Install application > application opens popup advert > popup advert calls adspace purchased by companies to display random advert and less like:

Install application > GET JACKED BY ZANGO, LOL

...so, once and for all, can anyone who played with this thing - because I haven't - set the record straight?

In it's original incarnation, did this application

A) open a box for Zango and only Zango every single time it was tested, or

B) did it just happen to randomly show a Zango advert (out of a big pile of other things it could have displayed)?

I'm all for talking about the dangers of social networking sites, but only when something is directly trying to exploit you and mess things up for everybody with an actual attack of some kind. All this pandemonium and (potentially needless) worry about Facebook is a step in the wrong direction IF it turns out all Secret Crush does is display a cycle of generic adverts in a popup box.

To be honest, whether the correct answer is A or B, the thing that's really important here is being left by the wayside, which is this:

.....yes, the part where you give the clowns who made the secret crush application access to "know who you are and access my information". If they're happy to experiment with popups that display adverts when you install their application onto your page, I'd be a damn sight more worried about exactly what kind of information they gain access to - and what they can do with it - when clicking the "Add secret crush" button.

Don't get me wrong, I've spent a long time calling out Zango on really stupid things, and will continue to do so when they come to light - but I'm wondering if we're currently stringing them up for being the wrong advert in the popup at the wrong time, as opposed exploring who the makers of the Secret Crush application are instead.

Thoughts?