Spyware is a relatively new kind of threat that most anti-virus systems do not address.
Spyware is software that is installed on your computer—software that you may not know has been installed and software that you may not want to be installed.
Originally thought to be a cool way to track surfing and Internet buying habits, spyware or “ad-ware” generally sends information from your computer to someone else’s computer—often without your explicit permission or knowledge. The real scary part is that this information could be personal financial data like your Social Security Number or it may be the userIDs and passwords you use to access online banking.
Is Spyware always bad?
There are legitimate reasons why some software sends and receives information without your knowledge; however, software should never send and receive information without your permission.
Remove & Prevent Spyware
Download and install Spybot-Search & Destroy. This is free software that removes spyware from your PC. Updates can be obtained by clicking on the "Search for Updates" button and then selecting "download updates". Once updates have been installed, click the immunization button to prevent many common spyware instances on your PC in the future.
Download and install Ad-Aware Personal. This is another freeware program for searching and removing spyware. The interface is somewhat user friendly; however, the freeware version does not contain any sort of preventative measures against future spyware infections.
Download and install SpywareBlaster. SpywareBlaster is a free program that does not clean spyware and adware from your system, but it can help prevent spyware from being installed on your PC. Unfortunately, if you install this free version, you must manually request updates.
