stop spyware

Why spyware sucks

Spyware (or adware) presents one of the biggest threats to online privacy today. Personal data or Web browsing patterns are collected from unsuspecting users and sent to advertising, marketing and research firms by way of small applications running in the background of Windows®. The data is used within the companies collecting the data or sold in statistical reports.

So how can these companies get away with it? One common strategy is packaging the spyware with another application the user chooses to download. A November, 2003 report conducted by the Center for Democracy and Technology had this to say about the legal ramifications of spyware:

CNN.com
Though some spyware may violate communications and computer-trespass laws, most programs are protected by agreements buried in long, detailed disclosures that users click on when they download other programs.

Spyware is also the number one cause of system slowdowns because it uses up system resources such as memory (RAM) and hard drive space. Computer users that fail to control the problem are left with sluggish, error-prone machines that toil with all the spyware while major tasks play second fiddle.

Malware: spyware's even shadier cousin

Like a virus, malware is programmed to screw up your computer or screw you over, big time. The "mal" means malicious, and while adware is legit, software outfits producing malware may be committing theft or fraud. As an example, keyboard loggers record everything that is typed in order to extract banking information.

Spyware prevention

Web proxies (or anonymizers) such as LivreProxy.com, LetMeBy.com, ProxySurf.org, or ProxyAnon.com automatically block malicious scripts. The downside is a proxy may also prevent useful online scripts from working properly. It's an ideal solution for general browsing or visiting sites you don't trust.

You can avoid getting spyware, malware and viruses in the first place by minimizing the following software download scenarious:

• Software developed by obscure companies you're unfamiliar with
• Shareware and freeware programs you don't really need
• Downloads from shady sources or sites chock-full of ads and popups
• Illegal, pirated software

Another option is to increase the security settings in your Web browser. If you use Internet Explorer, click Tools > Internet Options > Security tab, then move the slider to medium or high. Unfortunately this may block access to features that aren't really harmful. For most people the best course of action is to install a few good anti-spyware programs and run system scans regularly.

Blast spyware

Currently, the top anti-spyware software applications are Windows Defender, Spybot Search and Destroy, Ad-Aware, Spyware Doctor and PestPatrol. Using just one of these programs is not enough. Andy Walker of CyberWalker.net gives this advice:

CyberWalker.net
When I was host of the TV show Call for Help we ran lab tests to see which anti-spyware programs would clean all spyware. We found no one program did it all. However, if you installed the free two programs above (Windows Defender, Spybot Search and Destroy) and PestPatrol you are pretty much guaranteed protection from all spyware. It may seem like overkill, but unfortunately that's the nature of anti-spyware programs - there's no one stop solution, although of all the programs PestPatrol performed the best followed by Spyware Doctor, which I also like very much.

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Spyware prevention, detection and removal.

Em português:

Prevenção, deteção e remoção de Spyware.

En français:

Empêchement, détection et déplacement de Spyware.

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