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Published by: Stacey Egan on 23-Jul-22

 

PROTECT YOUR PC FROM

ADWARE & SPYWARE

 

 

Computer menaces differentiated:  Adware vs. Spyware 

In a world wherein technology plays a big role in human beings’ comfort, leisure, and learning, the personal computer and the Internet have become very indispensable tools.  However, as more and more people become dependent on these two, you come to see others who take advantage of computer users everywhere and cause them nuisance and damage - using the same technology that’s meant to make life easier. 

 

It’s no wonder then why it’s very hard nowadays to keep your computers free of unwanted advertisements.  As if spams and viruses are not bad enough, people invented spyware and adware, which basically work together to bring your Internet connection experience to a crawl, as well as bombard your computer with popup advertisements, and compromise your privacy and security. 

 

But do you know the difference between spyware and adware? 

 

Adware Explained

 

You surf the net today.  The next day, you are surprised to find the homepage of your browser changed to a rundown site and your computer desktop has a new program that you don’t remember ever installing. 

 

You might as well consider your self a victim of adware. 

 

What is adware? 

 

Adware, also known as advertising supported software, is a package that automatically downloads, displays, or plays advertisements to a personal computer almost right after installation of software or use of an application. 

 

It may also install an extra component, which feeds your computer advertising, often through the delivery of popup advertisements or installation of a new toolbar in the browser.  Other adware may take over your browser and redirect you to sites that you don’t really want to go to. 

 

More often than not, adware is a legitimate source of income for many companies that offer software to users for free.  Eudora, an e-mail program, is often cited as a good example of this.  You can purchase the e-mail program or run Eudora in a so-called “sponsored mode.”  In the mentioned mode, the program displays an advertisement window and more or less three toolbar links. 

 

What’s good with this program is that it doesn’t keep an eye on your computer use or even give away important information about you.  This kind of adware only serves paid advertisements within it.  Once you quit using Eudora, the advertisements stop running in your computer system. 

 

Once web tracking is involved, we are no longer dealing with adware.  Instead, we have spyware. 

 

Spyware Exposed 

 

You surf the net today, doing some on-line banking and settling of your credit card account.  The next day, you go to the mall.  In need of cash, you try to withdraw money from the automated teller machine.  To your horror, all of your money is gone. 

 

You might have been a victim of spyware. 

 

What is spyware? 

 

Spyware covertly monitors your Internet and computer use.  Some spyware are malicious, in such a way that some collect passwords, user ID’s, credit card numbers, and some other sensitive details about the user.  

 

Spyware is somewhat similar to the Trojan horse (a program that claims to rid the computer of virus, but introduces virus instead) since you can download freeware but then your computer will be infected by something else – the spyware itself. 

 

Besides giving a user problems connected to privacy and ethics, spyware robs you through usage of the computer’s memory, as well as eating of bandwidth (amount of information that can be conveyed in a specific period of time), making Internet exploration slower than ever.  The spyware may also cause your computer to crash or become unstable. 

 

Licensing terms are expected to contain warnings as regards the installation of a spyware program that may come with the downloading of the needed program.  However, because of the size of the text, these agreements may not be read completely. 

 

There you have it – the menaces of our computer use.  But since you are aware about the difference and the circumstances surrounding their installation and effects, you will be able to take proper precautions.  You will be now more careful about downloading free software and programs from the Internet. 

 

 

 

The need for an adware and spyware blocker 

There is this one law school student whose thesis is about money laundering so oftentimes she would google the term to come up with a ready list of online references. This proved to be useful to her and the entire process of writing her paper. After several months of doing so, she was confronted with problems like being directed to a weird page totally not related to money laundering every time she types the same words. 

 

At first she thought it was just a glitch in the internet system and then she rationalized that no it maybe a glitch in the search engine she is using but the persistent occurrence of such a thing made her think that someone bugged her. We all hate bugging people us but people we can fend of. What this law student is confronted with is a computer bug that she cannot fend off. In the first place she is not a technology savvy person and in the second place she never uses her laptop for any other things than academic research and actual writing of her papers.

 

The situation above is not an isolated case. There are many people who find themselves caught up in technology problems that are mind boggling but actually can be answered with two words and those two words are spyware and adware. The infamous term of spyware was first coined in the year 1995 but it was popularized in the year 2000. Spyware is a computer software innocently infiltrated in a personal computer to be able to access personal information of the user. 

 

This is done by studying logging keystrokes, web browsing history and even scanning a user’s hard drive. Sounds like something we see only in James Bond movies but apparently we are wrong for anyone can be a victim of spyware. It is safe to use the word victim because no one wants to be monitored of all their online activities. Spyware can understandably be used to spy on criminals because such use is beneficial to society but how about the use of spyware to intercept credit card details and the like. There is simply no excuse for the lax of the use of spyware.

 

What ordinary people can do to protect themselves is to block spyware and all other software programs similar to it like adware and malware. This can easily be done by availing adware and spyware blocker programs online. The role of these blocking programs include to remove or disable existing spyware programs or to avoid the installation of these malicious software programs. 

 

Spyware, adware, malware are not like virus or worms that self replicate but they can be just as hassle as their counterparts for whoever wants to be disrupted of their normal personal computer activities. One of the more popular hassles cause by these infectious software programs is the slowness of the computer which can really be annoying because when you are at work you tend to want to finish things quick not just because you are required but also because you want more done or you want to be able to go home early. 

 

In some infections, spyware is not even evident as the bad guy so it can get away with its crime. It is best then to have a ready blocker to at least do something for preventing any infection to occur in the first place. 

 

                        

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Adware and spyware removal

Computers are composed of two things namely the hardware and the software. Should something infect the software such as a virus or spyware, the person will soon lose sensitive information or at worse have to spend a lot of money to have it repaired. 

 

As more companies and households are using computers for almost everything, people should be vigilant more than ever when it comes to Internet security. This can be done by making sure that there are backup files stored in a safe place as well as setting up certain defense mechanisms from viruses and other threats.

 

One such system is called an adware spyware remover and those who only want the best should get it from Symantec.

 

Symantec is one of the leading service providers of anti virus software products . Symantec is also known as Norton by Symantec.

 

                                                  

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What makes spyware so dangerous is that it records certain information from a user, which can be read by the programmer later on. This individual can then use the credit card to make unauthorized purchases or steal money from the account.   

 

Symantec’s adware spyware remover system is designed to look for existing bugs in the system and then destroy it. The package it offers can be used by those at home or when working in the office. 

 

Since new spyware and adware pop up everyday, customers who choose to purchase the system can be rest assured that the computer is always secure because the company always launches product updates that can be done either manually or automatically  

 

The person can download the adware spyware removal system from the company website. Those who are unsure whether to buy it can try it for 30 days free but pay before the expiration in order to continue the services.  

 

Symantec unlike other programs does not have to be activated in order to do a systems check on the computer. This is because it will automatically do this once the user has logged on.

 

The only thing the individual will have to do is make sure the program is compatible with the existing operating system as well as check if there is enough memory in the hard drive to download it.  Those who are unable to run it should probably do an upgrade.

 

When the spyware or adware has been removed, the best way to make sure it does not return is by creating a firewall. The person should also be careful when opening email from strangers, accessing certain websites and pop up ads because this is the reason why these things end up in the computer.  

 

Symantec continues to be one of the most trusted names in the computer industry. It has received good reviews from critics and PC magazines for the standard of excellence it has provided in all of its products.  

 

As software companies try to make the computers people use safe everyday, so too are the hackers and programmers who want to do the same for personal gain. The individual can choose to be with the best or get something else but it is always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to protecting the information stored in the computer.