Upon a user's choice, it would share jokes and facts, manage downloads, sing songs, and talk, among other functions, as it used Microsoft Agent.

BonziBuddy was described as spyware[1] and adware,[2] and discontinued in 2004 after the company behind it faced lawsuits regarding the software and was ordered to pay fines.

In 2002, an article in Consumer Reports Web Watch labeled BonziBuddy as spyware, stating that it contains a backdoor trojan that collects information from users.

[10] In April 2007, PC World readers voted BonziBuddy the sixth on a list named "The 20 Most Annoying Tech Products".

In the settlement, Bonzi Software agreed to modify their ads so that they looked less like Windows dialog boxes and more like actual advertisements.