Spyware is
surreptitious software that gathers private information from your computer
without your consent or knowledge and transmits the data it collects to someone
else, silently in the background, using your internet connection.
Spyware can collect
almost all types of data, including internet surfing habits, user logins, as
well as bank and credit card information, along with your PINs, using
key-loggers to record every stroke of your fingers. It can scan files on your
hard drive, snoop on other applications (such as chat programs or word
processors), install further spyware programs, and read cookies, relaying the
information it gathers back to its author.
Spyware can also change
the default home page on your browser or redirect your browser to web pages
other than the ones you want. Some spyware can even change computer settings.
It is usually difficult
to detect and is nearly always malicious in intent. Indeed recent surveys
suggest that more than 60 percent of computers are infected with some form of
spyware, and that more than 90 percent of users found to have spyware in their
computers are not aware of it.
What are the dangers?
By monitoring your
activity on the internet, spyware enables targeted advertising. In other words,
it providers advertisers with the data they need to bombard you with ads based
on your perceived preferences according to your internet activity. In this
case, it is known as adware.
The result of tracking
your behaviour in this way is a plethora of unsolicited pop-up ads. These can
be really annoying, though hardly dangerous.
More seriously, because
spyware is using memory and system resources as it runs in the background to
gather and send information back to its home base via your internet connection,
it can lead to system instability or crashes.
It can also have a
negative effect on your computer's performance by installing additional
software, redirecting web browser searches, changing computer settings,
reducing connection speeds, changing the homepage or even completely disrupting
network connection ability.
You can cope with all
these problems. The real danger is the very strong possibility of financial
fraud using your bank account and credit card details that, along with the
related PINs, spyware collects when you engage in internet banking.
How does spyware get
into your computer?
Spyware is usually
installed when you download some free software or shareware you actually
want... the spyware piggybacks on the installation. One of the commonest ways
to become a victim of spyware is by downloading some of the peer-to-peer file
swapping products that are available today.
The writers of spyware
programs often simply repackage freeware and bundle it with their own spyware.
Others may pay shareware developers to bundle their spyware with legitimate
software.
Indeed, the licensing
agreements that accompany software downloads sometimes warn the user that a
spyware program will be installed along with the desired applications.
Unfortunately, few people read these agreements before clicking I agree or Yes.
But even if you read these agreements closely, you will notice that the
reference to the spyware is usually couched in obtuse, hard-to-read legal
disclaimers.
What can you do to
prevent spyware getting in?
There are several ways
you can try to prevent your computer from being infected with
spyware:
·
Don't download free
programs or applications unless you are absolutely sure that they are OK. Think:
why would anyone create a piece of valuable software and give it away free of
charge?
·
Read licensing
agreements carefully and if they are couched in obscure legalese, forget about
it.
·
Be ultra-careful when
using peer-to-peer file swapping.
·
Undertake regular
maintenance of your system.
·
Ensure you anti-virus
software is updated regularly and that it checks incoming software before it is
installed.
But no matter how
careful you are, you are bound to join the 60 percent plus of users who are the
victims of spyware in some form or other.
How do you get rid of
spyware?
Getting rid of spyware
is more art than science as many writers of spyware make removing these
malicious programs purposely difficult. Some of the code may be hidden from
Windows.
But with a few free
tools, plenty of time, some know-how and a bit of luck you can do it. First the
tools... four free tools you can download online:
·
Microsoft's Malicious
Software Removal Tool... available free of charge from microsoft.com
·
Microsoft's Windows
Defender... available free of charge from microsoft.com
·
SuperAntiSpyware...
available as free edition and professional (paid) edition from
superantispyware.com. The free edition does a decent job of removing spyware or
viruses.
·
Your anti-virus
program... (You do have an anti-virus program installed, don't you?)
Note that some spyware
can prevent you from downloading these tools or even from visiting the
Microsoft website. If this happens, download the applications to another
computer, copy the installers to a USB drive, plug that drive into your
computer and install from the USB.
Spyware usually
manifests itself as slower-than-normal performance. But poor performance can be
due to other (unrelated) reasons, such as having a hard drive that has not been
fragmented for some time or is full, running too many applications with
insufficient system memory, or bugs in a program that prevent memory being
freed up when you close it. Check these factors out first before deciding that
you have spyware.
Then, follow these four
steps:
[1] Run the Malicious
Software Removal Tool first... making sure that you have
downloaded the latest version before running it. Though this tool only searches
for a small fraction of all the malware you can pick up, the ones it finds are
the most serious threats. If this tool does not find anything, go on to the
next step.
[2] Use Windows
Defender, after first making sure you have the latest updates, to
perform a full scan. If the program finds malware, follow the on-screen
instructions to get rid of it. You may need to reboot your computer as some
spyware does not let you uninstall it while Windows is running. If this tool
also comes up empty, do step 3.
[3] Go to www.superantispyware.com and
download and install the free edition of the software. Once the software is
installed, click on scan your computer. The scan will take several
minutes depending on HDD space and then remove any threats that have been
found.
If Super Antispyware
cannot find the problem, go on to the next step.
[4] Run a full
scan using your anti-virus program. This will take several hours,
perhaps overnight. The program should deal with any suspect files
automatically.
It is unlikely that one
of these three programs will not solve your spyware problem. However if that is
the case then you have picked up new type of spyware that has not yet been
included in the anti-spyware databases. Now you need to check every process
running on your computer to see if any of them is spyware. This can be quite a
daunting task.
Though there are tools
that can help you by showing you everything that is running on your PC,
enabling you to decide whether a particular program is legitimate or not,
running them requires a certain amount of expertise. Caution: you
should be aware that if you perform certain removal steps improperly, your
computer could become inoperable. Thus it would be best to seek expert help.
Alternatively you could go
nuclear... this entails backing up all your data onto external media,
formatting your hard disk and then reinstalling your operating system using the
DVD that came with the computer when it was new. You will then have to
reinstall all the applications you have as well as all your data files. This
will probably take hours, perhaps a whole day to re-install everything. But you'll
end up with a super-clean machine that's as fast as the day you bought it.
Using online expertise
Removing spyware seems a
scary task if you have never worked on your computer before. If you don't feel
up to removing it yourself you will need outside help from expert technicians.
One solution is to bring
your computer down to a computer repair shop or get a technician to visit your
home or office. This can be expensive, probably costing at least €100.
A less costly solution,
which is just as reliable, is to contact an online maintenance and repair
service. The service will, with your permission, open a secure connection into
your computer from a remote location and take care of your spyware problem
while you watch the process on your screen or do something else. Expect to pay
about €25 at the most for this kind of service.
A bonus with the online
solution is that the technician who handles your problem will have a supervisor
and plenty of back-up experts to hand for additional advice. Repair shops normally
only have one or, at the most, two technicians on the premises.
Paul Kennedy is
the marketing manager of Jupiter Support (Ireland). He can be
contacted by email to paul@jupitersupport.ie. You can also go to jupitersupport.ie where
you can use chat or Skype to talk with a technician free of charge.
Alternatively you can call 0766803006 to speak to a technician
and get free advice. Jupiter Support only charges a fixed fee of€19.99 to
rid your computer of any and all viruses on a no-fix/no-fee basis.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_D_Kennedy
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8055658
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