Diigo

Posted: October 15, 2014

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Ranking:	19,655
Threat Level:	8/10
Infected PCs:	735

First Seen:	October 15, 2014
Last Seen:	February 16, 2025
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

Diigo (or the Diigo Web Collector) is a browser extension for Chrome that provides bookmarking, Web-searching and general research-related features. Malware experts also found some privacy and performance concerns with the Diigo extension, and, for these reasons, they suggest deleting Diigo through standardized PUP removal tools.

The Hidden Price of Highlighting Text

Diigo markets itself as a useful Web research tool, and has done so for over a decade, but its website's history has had more than its fair share of negative publicity, as well. Malware researchers found previous instances of the Diigo company using spam for self-promotion. The same company also was seen adapting poor security standards that could lead to passwords (and other sensitive information) being compromised, in the event of a third-party attack. One incident in 2012 confirmed these suspicions with the Diigo site temporarily hijacked and forced to redirect traffic to a separate website.

Although Diigo's company has had a less than exemplary history, malware researchers found only minor issues with Diigo as a browser extension. Diigo, which is specific to Chrome, uses JavaScript to give its users access to text-highlighting, text-searching and other, standard functions that may be useful for online studies. No performance problems were linked to these functions, but Diigo does raise privacy concerns from its inclusion of a passive, Web-tracking feature that may monitor which websites its users visit. Some free versions of Diigo extensions also have been linked to the display of unwanted browser advertising, which makes these Diigo variants classifiable as adware (and, potentially, detriments to Chrome's security).

Choosing Whether to Review Your Text without Diigo's Assistance

Depending on the severity of their drawbacks, Potentially Unwanted Programs like Diigo extensions may be safe to allow on your PC or hazardous to your PC's safety. Since there's an exceptionally high correlation with adware users and exposure to other threats, malware researchers usually advise deleting Diigo, although not all PC users may have any dissatisfaction with its features. Companies with past associations with spam messages and similar, legally questionable acts also should be held to strict standards for proving that they can respect the security of your browser with their proffered add-ons.

Diigo is available at both the Chrome Web store and on its website, diigo.com (along with a range of other Diigo-related utilities). At this time, malware researchers have found no incidents of Diigo's installation occurring automatically; full awareness of what add-ons you're installing should be the only defense required. However, you should be attentive to the usual means of distributing adware and other PUPs, which also may promote Diigo's distribution: bundles and software installers that include 'optional' components. These bundle utilities frequently are detected by appropriate security products, and often will allow you to opt out of installing any PUPs.

Diigo

Threat Metric

The Hidden Price of Highlighting Text

Choosing Whether to Review Your Text without Diigo's Assistance

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