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It's the "legal version" of botnets, yes.

Nope, they’re different things. Proxy networks like Proxybase [0] use open-source clients and ask for the user’s consent before allowing them to join the network.

[0] https://proxybase.xyz

Basically all of them are botnets, yes. They generally claim to have consent but I'm pretty sure 99% of it is "some app the user uses has it buried in a 200 page ToS"-style consent.

No, they are not. Just ask any AI.

The companies say they have consent because saying "yeah we'll give you access to a botnet" is illegal.

https://cloud.google.com/blog/topics/threat-intelligence/dis...

>These SDKs, which are offered to developers across multiple mobile and desktop platforms, surreptitiously enroll user devices into the IPIDEA network.

If I install an app with a big ToS and buried in there is "we use third-party monetization SDKs" and buried in there is "welcome to our botnet" they do not actually have my consent.