Spyware - What It Is, What It Does, and How To Get Rid of It
by Linda F. Johnson, MA, MOS
Linda's Computer Stop
http://personal-computer-tutor.com

Spyware is one of the more unpleasant parts of our Internet life. Often, when surfing to websites or purchasing or downloading programs, games, screen savers, etc., spyware is placed on our computers without our knowledge.

It comes in all flavors and some are just nuisances, but others can be indeed dangerous. Spyware is divided between trackware, which simply tracks your surfing habits to create reports for advertisers, and the more dangerous, malware, that can actually place trojans on your computer to search it for personal information you store there, and the most dangerous of all, keyloggers, which record keystrokes you use when entering passwords, credit card numbers, etc. when you are at websites. Some spyware even "hijacks" your home page, so everytime you open your web browser, you are at their website. Even the less "dangerous" trackware can cause you to have computer problems since it often runs in the background constantly and slows your computer down noticeably and can conflict with software you have installed and cause errors.

Keeping your computer free of spyware can be a daunting/expensive process if you don't know what to do. And, believe it or not, there are anti-spyware programs out there that actually install spyware themselves. I've even seen so-called anti-spyware programs that offer free trial versions and the trial version installs spyware, then finds it for you and tells you it is removing it. This makes you believe that the program saved your butt, but in actuality, the spyware it found was NOT there before you installed it, and it does NOT remove it. However, it tells you it has been removed, and now the anti-spyware program is spying on you, and the spying these programs do is sometimes the dangerous kind.

Spyware is most commonly installed on your computer when you use peer-to-peer file sharing to get music/video downloads through sites like KazAa. Another way to get spyware is to visit warez sites; sites which offer illegal free copies of major programs. And, another route to spyware infestation is through pornography sites. Unfortunately, you can still get spyware on your computer, even if you don't go to these types of sites, because many free sites that offer fun stuff bundle it up with spyware. Trying to avoid spyware infestation if you surf the web is becoming next to impossible.

What to do? Who to trust? Well, I have some suggestions of the more well-respected, reliable programs that will help you and I will explain how they work and where you can download them (some for free).

Currently, there are two free programs I think should be on everyone's computers. These are Lavasoft's Ad-Aware and Spybot Search and Destroy. Both have free and paid versions but I find the free versions to be perfectly adequate for removing spyware. Both work in a similar manner. The free versions allow you to manually scan your computer for spyware and will show you what they find and allow you to remove it. Though they both have a backup feature so you can restore anything they delete if you have problems, I've never had to restore: I've always found them reliable at removing only what is unnecessary on my computer. The paid versions offer the extra protection of alerting you when spyware is being installed so you can catch it before it is installed. I recommend you use both because it seems one will catch some stuff and the other catches others, so both are necessary for full protection. The combination of the two will remove most trackware and malware.

Lavasoft's Adaware
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/

Spybot Search & Destroy
http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,22262,00.asp

A free program that says it will remove spyware BEFORE it infects your system is SpywareBlaster. I have not tried this because I have a paid program on my computer that I use and it works very well for this. The one I use is called Zero Spyware. I hear they are both very similar.

SpywareBlaster
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html

The reason I use Zero Spyware is because, in my case, it is the only one I've used that has successfully kept key loggers out of my computer. Since I do a fair amount of online shopping and banking, I am ultra paranoid about key loggers which could be stealing my credit card number or banking info by recording my keystrokes as I type. Another paid program which also does this is Pest Patrol, but I found Zero Spyware was more compatible with my computer. The only way to know which one works best for you is to try the demo versions of each before you make your decision.

Zero Spyware (free demo version, $29.95 to buy)
http://www.fbmsoftware.com/

Pest Patrol (free evaluation copy, $39.95 to buy)
http://www.pestpatrol.com/Products/PestPatrolHE/

Now, let's talk about browser hijacking. This is a very specific type of spyware that takes control of your browser's hoomepage so you are taken to a specific website every time you open Internet Explorer, Netscape, etc. (though Internet Explorer is the most susceptible to this)  Usually, the above mentioned programs will alert you to this, but if you actually do get hijacked, they may not be able to fix it. One of the more well known hijackers is something called CoolWebSearch. To my knowledge, the only program that gets rid of this nasty one is a freebie called CWShredder, which is no longer being updated so I'd recommend you download the existing version in case you need it in the future. Another good one is called HijackThis.

CWShredder
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4086.html

HijackThis
http://www.spychecker.com/program/hijackthis.html

I know this all may seem pretty overwhelming, but unfortunately, if you want to be able to surf the net nowadays, without having your privacy invaded, your system's performance compromised, and your money stolen, using these excellent tools is indeed necessary. And, remember that the spies are constantly changing, so use the "update" features in these programs to be sure you always have the latest versions which detect the newest spyware.

I hope this helps you understand what spyware is all about and how to avoid it. To keep uptodate on the latest nasties on the net, subscribe to my free ezine, ABC ~ All 'Bout Computers, for current information.

ABC ~ All 'Bout Computers
http://personal-computer-tutor.com/abc

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