How to Detect and Remove Spyware and Adware


By Debbie Jacobsen


Spyware and Adware Facts:

· Of the more than one billion computers on the internet today, 80% are not protected against spyware and adware.

· Spyware is the most common and most dangerous internet security threat today.

· Spyware is designed to steal our personal information so it can be used for illegal purposes.

· It is estimated that 60% of computers are infected with spyware and/or adware.

· Spyware is usually installed on our computers without our knowledge. We are usually “tricked” into installing adware by failing to read lengthy license agreements.

· Free software and cheap software usually contains spyware and/or adware.

· Free adware removers and free anti spyware software usually contains spyware.

· You can get spyware simply by browsing to an unscrupulous website.

· The amount of spyware on the internet has doubled within the past year, and will continue to grow significantly.

· Anti Spyware software is necessary to remove adware and spyware, and prevent you from getting it again. Antivirus software is not capable of removing all spyware and adware.

Spyware

Spyware is a small program or piece of code that is secretly installed on your computer and designed to “spy” on your online activity and/or personal information. Although not all spyware is used for illegal purposes, most of it can be very dangerous due of its ability to record keystrokes, take snapshots of our PC screen, and monitor everything we do online. Spyware that is used to commit crimes is called crime-ware.

Spyware gathers information and transmits it to the person who planted it. This person may use it himself or sell it to others. If the stolen data includes bank account or credit card information, you can be certain it will be used for a criminal’s personal gain. Other stolen information such as social security numbers, drivers license numbers, addresses, etc…, is often used in identity theft.

Symptoms of Spyware

Spyware is designed to run quietly in the background of our PC, and is normally not detectable unless you have a lot of it. The most common signs that your computer is infested with spyware is:

· Your computer is running much slower than usual.

· Your computer takes a lot longer to boot up than it used to.

· You see a lot of activity on your network connection.

Spyware’s Close Cousin - Adware

A close relative of spyware is commonly known as adware. Adware intrudes on your privacy much like spyware does, but unlike spyware which is designed to steal confidential information, adware’s purpose is usually related to marketing. In its most innocent form, adware tracks your browsing habits, the type of ads you click on, bookmarks you make and other similar online activities. A more dangerous and unsavory form of adware is designed to force you to look at certain advertisements or websites. This type of adware is often used to lure you to a place where spyware can be installed. Because adware’s purpose is designed to get you to perform an action, it is much easier to recognize than spyware.

Some common symptoms of adware:

· A hijacked browser home page. When you open your browser you see a different website.

· Pop-up ads that won’t quit.

· New icons or shortcuts on your desktop or new items in your favorites.

· New web pages keep opening by themselves.

· Search results that make no sense. Clicking on the links here will install spyware on your PC.

How to Detect and Remove Spyware and Adware:

Obviously, spyware and adware are NOT something you want to have on your computer. The only way to detect and remove all the spyware and adware on your PC is to use anti-spyware software. There are many good anti spyware products on the market, and many are available to try for free before you buy. Because free adware removers and free anti-spyware software is often designed to trick you into installing more adware and spyware on your computer, it is best to stay away from this. For the best protection and peace of mind, purchase good anti spyware software from a reputable internet security software company.


More Resources

Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 403, exiting

More Personal Technology Information:

Related Articles

Temporary Fixes to Spyware, Ad-ware, and Virus Infections
So you've got some spyware, ad-ware, or viruses on your system. For whatever reason, you are unable to get ahold of a virus detection & removal program, or a good ad-ware scanner.
Taking Advantage of the iPod Experience
Music lovers have been carrying around radios and other bulky music devices in order to take their tunes along withthem as they go from place to place. With the iPod - a portable unit that's manufactured by Apple - the music experience offers a higher quality in a much more compact size.
Deleting and Destroying Data Forever
Peoples' private information needs to stay private, even after it has been erased. Wait a minute, after it's been erased?Have you ever given away an old computer or diskette, deleting the files off it, or giving it a quick format to make sure your information is gone? That might not be enough to stop some one from easily recovering the information!When you delete a file, normally the operating system and file system say, "ok the file is gone!" but at the physical level the information is still there.
iPod users get the picture
iPod users start to get the picture and it's turning out to be colorful fun!!The latest generation of hi tech gadget users are watching the different media they use start to converge as Apple launches its latest grab for the market with iPod Photo. Not only can you listen to all your music on the go, or organize your business and social life, but now your entire photo collection can be viewed at hand too.
Enhanced Web Browsing With Toolbars
As the Web grows more crowded and just plain "noisy" withinformation bombarding us from every angle, most peoplewelcome any tool, trick or shortcut to help them wadethrough the mountains of data to find what they want.Since your web browser represents your main window to theInternet, it makes sense for any tool which enables you tofind what you need and get around faster online should sitright where you need it most.
Connect Your IPAQ to Linux
Choose Not To ConformPalm pilots and pdas are constantly growing in the ways that people use them in their everyday lives. Having a pocket pc is becoming the standard rather than the exception.
The Best MP3 Players Under $100
You don't have to fork out $250 for a super-diggy-whizbang mp3 player, do you? There are cheap mp3 players to be had, with a host of features perfectly suitable for everyday use. Here is a small sampling of some of the highest-rated cheap mp3 players.
Basic Computer Thermodynamics
That desk in front of you and everything else around you is made up of atoms. An atom consists of electrons orbiting around a nucleus.
Is DVD Storage An Attractive Alternative For Your Computer Backup?
If you have a computer for home use or for your business and don't take comprehensive backup for full protection then you are in the danger-zone.Maybe you do not take any backup at all.
How to Buy a Plasma Television Set
Most people think that all you have to do to purchase a new plasma television set is to walk into a shop, look around, and purchase the first set that catches your attention. This is how you're supposed to do it, right? Wrong! Buying a television, whether it has a plasma monitor or a LCD monitor, takes careful planning.
Selecting the Perfect Big Screen TV
Selecting a TV isn't as easy as it used to be in years goneby. Rather than going to the local department store and choosing a console that would take up a large portion of the living room, we now have other options.
How to Switch to Firefox and Why You should
First things first, what is Firefox? Well, it's a browser. Ok but what's that? A browser is a computer program used to view web pages, to browse through the world wide web.
Refurbished Computers on the Internet
What is a Refurbished Computer?Refurbished Computers. Remanufactured Computers.
PC Owners - The Largest Criminal Gang Ever?
The year is 1981. IBM has just released the Personal Computer; a low cost machine it hopes will create a winning brand.
Spyware Remover
Your first step in removing dangerous infections from your computer should be downloading a free program called Hijack This. Make sure you download the file and extract it to a directory on your hard drive, you can call it HijackThis.
Compile .BAT Files into Native Windows Applications (.EXE)
Since the DOS days, batch files have been one of the most convenient and immediate ways to accomplish certain tasks. Even today it's possible to find some remarkably sophisticated utilities written as command-line batch files.
What Exactly are Screensavers? - part I
After reading this good article you will know some important information about screensavers and their history. You will find out how screensavers are different from other applications and what advantages you'll have if you use them.
Does Microsoft Show Hackers How To Attack?
After another security hole recently surfaced in Microsoft's Windows operating system, the software giant released a patch this past Friday to plug the possibly devastating "back door" which allows hackers to potentially seize control of any pc running Windows.The latest threat, "Download.
Lives With Games Tradition and Industry
The United States Of America citizen feels that games is a part of their life while developed countries such as the United Kingdom and Japan would feels that Games is high prospects to gain profit either in domestic level or internationally. Games is very influence in human life at this time.
How to Use SQLXML to Retrieve Data from SQL Server Database?
Using SQL Server 2000 and above versions you can retrieve data from SQL Server in XML format directly from the database. Many XML related features were incorporated in the SQL Server database.