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How many spyware items are infecting your computer?
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| Monday, January 5, 2009 |
I had by mistake, a plug-in called Intelligent Explorer join my browser. What a nightmare! I have another article on this subject, but it brings back a point. Spyware and adware are infecting computers. Most computers have no protection from them. More frightening is the frequency of them. InfosecWriters the website, "According to a 2004 survey by America Online and the National Cyber Security Alliance, 91% of respondents were familiar with the term spyware. Only 53% believe that their computers were infected, but an analysis revealed that 80% of their PCs is a certain type of spyware installed on them. "Obviously," ... The average number of spyware components per computer was 93 with a computer with more than a thousand. "
What is Spyware?
Butte College (www.bctv.butte.edu / support / spyware.html) offers this definition:
"The term" spyware "is generally defined as a program that enters your computer without permission and hides in the background while it makes unwanted changes to your user experience.
Spyware is generally not designed to damage your computer. The damage is more a byproduct of its main mission to serve you targeted advertisements or make your browser display certain sites or search results.
At present, most spyware targets only the Windows operating system (Internet Explorer). "
To be fair, spyware can be harmless, for example, tracking cookies are not many. Although such things violate your privacy, they are not really harm anything. Others, however, are extremely dangerous.
So what do you do about it?
No spyware seems to do everything, but there are many products solutions there who can help. Here is a list of some of the best tools to find spyware at the following address:
1) Try Ad-Aware 6.0 Professional LavaSoft (there is also a free version with fewer features)
2) Spybot Search & Destroy PepiMK of Software
3) Xoftspy form Pareto Logic
5) spyware from Guard Javacool Software is a free program
4) Pest Patrol (now part of Computer Associates by acquisition)
5) McAfee Anti-Spyware
One thing is certain: you need to take seriously spyware. For some reason, too many people who think queJe just that, by mistake, a plug-in called Intelligent Explorer join my browser. What a nightmare! I have another article on this subject, but it brings back a point. Spyware and adware are infecting computers. Most computers have no protection from them. More frightening is the frequency of them. InfosecWriters the website, "According to a 2004 survey by America Online and the National Cyber Security Alliance, 91% of respondents were familiar with the term spyware. Only 53% believe that their computers were infected, but an analysis revealed that 80% of their PCs is a certain type of spyware installed on them. "Obviously," ... The average number of spyware components per computer was 93 with a computer with more than a thousand. "
What is Spyware?
Butte College (www.bctv.butte.edu / support / spyware.html) offers this definition:
"The term" spyware "is generally defined as a program that enters your computer without permission and hides in the background while it makes unwanted changes to your user experience.
Spyware is generally not designed to damage your computer. The damage is more a byproduct of its main mission to serve you targeted advertisements or make your browser display certain sites or search results.
At present, most spyware targets only the Windows operating system (Internet Explorer). "
To be fair, spyware can be harmless, for example, tracking cookies are not many. Although such things violate your privacy, they are not really harm anything. Others, however, are extremely dangerous.
So what do you do about it?
No spyware seems to do everything, but there are many products solutions there who can help. Here is a list of some of the best tools to find spyware at the following address:
1) Try Ad-Aware 6.0 Professional LavaSoft (there is also a free version with fewer features)
2) Spybot Search & Destroy PepiMK of Software
3) Xoftspy form Pareto Logic
5) spyware from Guard Javacool Software is a free program
4) Pest Patrol (now part of Computer Associates by acquisition)
5) McAfee Anti-Spyware
One thing is certain: you need to take seriously spyware. For some reason, too many people who think the anti-virus solutions are the end of the solution. They are not.
And when all else fails?
Finally, as radical as it seems, if your computer has been infected by a large number of spyware programs, the only solution you have in May is to safeguard your data, and perform a complete reinstallation of the system holding. |
posted by neptunus @ 6:01 PM
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