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Stop It Before It Starts – Easy Ways to Keep Spyware from Sneaking Up on You
You have your computer and you have performed regular checks to make sure nothing is wrong. Everything seems to be running smoothly, so you do not worry. Then. as you are surfing through the Internet, you come across several ads that offer to protect your computer from spyware and malicious content. You consider downloading or even purchasing them, but then you think that your computer cannot possibly be infected with anything after all you do maintenance on it regularly. Therefore, you decide to download a free trial version and run the scan it offers and it comes back and says that you have over two thousand suspected pieces of spyware! You sit there staring at your computer wondering how in the world this could spyware have gotten through your defenses. This article will look at a few ways that spyware sneaks in unawares and some preventive measures that can be taken.
What exactly is spyware – it is an all-inclusive term for sneaky programs that often piggyback onto a user’s computer as you are downloading an authorized computer program. The program that does this the most is adware, which will collect personal data and report the way you surf through the internet and your shopping habits. That is why you see pop-ups change frequently with different ads.
Along with the annoyance of pop-ups that spyware bring with it another problem is that it also eats up bandwidth, which takes up space on your computer, and can cause your computer to crash. If you use your computer for both personal and business purposes, spyware can pose a threat to any sensitive data that you may have stored.
There are very malicious spyware programs that actually steel your keystrokes and/or hijack your homepages so that they can gain access to your passwords and it is downhill from there. Now, if you thought that your firewall helps to protect you from spyware you are wrong. Firewalls do not prevent spyware from being loaded they only keep the spyware from sending out the information it has gathered. Antivirus programs are not intended to detect the presence of malicious programs such as spyware.
Corporations who have employed many safeguards against spyware have their hands full when employees take work home with them. The employee’s home computer may not have the same type of protection, if they are protected from spyware at all. If the employee is working on confidential information, it is very easy for someone to steel the employee’s keystrokes and passwords, then simply log into the corporate site, and take whatever information they are looking for.
There is ongoing debate as to whether the legislative body (state or federal level) should step in to stop malicious spyware programs. As the debate continues, there are at least twelve states, which have enacted legislation to try to put a stop to this threat, to both the corporate and personal environment.
There are two companies Symantec and Network Associates that add anti-spyware components to packages they offer corporations. Business networks can also choose a package to help with malicious programs from PestPatrol. These packages allow the administrator to scan an entire network in a compact and efficient manner. One of the problems before with enterprise systems is that they were embedded with unsolicited adware at least 50 to 60 percent of the time. To detect or remove this spyware required specialized programs due to the way adware imbeds itself into the computer, usually doing so by generating thousands of registry entries.
How does spyware enter your computer? Normally this is done when you choose to accept a free download offer such as music, games, or software downloads. If you have spyware on your computer, you may find that your computer is running slower than normal. There will be more annoying pop-ups and it is possible that your homepage and personal information has been or could be hijacked. Spyware programs are not easily found and can be near impossible to remove. Your best course of action is to install an anti-spyware program that you are able to have it update automatically to monitor for malicious programs. It is also important to run complete scans of your computer on a regular basis to monitor any potential problems before they become so big you are unable to take care of them.
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