What You Absolutely Need To Know About Spyware 0

There are a lot of bad things that can happen by indiscriminately surfing the Internet these days. Spyware, adware, viruses can all ruin any Internet surfers experience. In this article I'll expose the truth about the good, the bad and the ugly with regards to spyware, and what you can do about it.

First of all, many people confuse spyware with computer viruses. A virus is made solely to cause damage, and reproduces itself by spreading through email list. In fact, it is called a virus as it spread just like a cold or any other illness. These are dangerous, and are only intended to do danger.

Spyware is software that by definition, collects your information with your knowledge. At best, these are controlled pieces of software knowingly put on your computer by your boss or your parents to monitor your computer activity. At worst, they are put there by anonymous third parties for a variety of purposes.

Advertising is their main objective, and the generation of revenue for the developers in something called pay per action. For example, if somebody includes a pay per action in a software that you downloaded, every time you click on a pop up advertisement, somebody gets paid. The way around this is to look for the "X" that is usually up in the corner. Software developers, however, are getting smarter, and sometimes hide that "X," so you need to actually hover your mouse where you think it might be in order to see it. Some programs, which are incredibly frustrating, won't offer the "X" until a few seconds have passed, literally forcing you to look at the advertisement.

Some spyware is actually helpful, and in many cases people don't even consider it spyware. For example, many browsers will remember your login details for your favorite web sites, saving you the trouble of having to type them in each time. Tracking cookies are other examples, which are placed in your browser to keep track of things like passwords and other log in details.

If you do have some spyware or advertisements that are popping up, try and find the software and disable it, or uninstall it. Be extremely wary of downloading any software you don't recognize.

Some spyware is intended to pave the way for viruses, by changing your firewall settings. This kinds of blurs the line between spyware and viruses, so it pays to be very careful about ever accepting actions that you don't recognize. When in doubt, always click "No" whenever you see a popup that you aren't familiar with, until you figure out what it's asking you to do. And it's always a good idea to have a good anti spyware and adware software installed that will always scan and protect your system from harm.