What Is Spyware?

Added: 06/27/2007

Ever wonder why, all of a sudden, you keep getting a lot of annoying pop up ads on your computer? They get so bad that you cannot use your computer the way you want to use it. If you are getting a lot of pop up ads on your computer and you cannot seem to stop them then you have a virus on your computer known as spyware. Spyware is not only any annoying piece of software but, more often than not, spyware is also stealing your important information.

So you are surfing the internet and you decide that you are going to click on that ad banner that promises a free iPod if you can just knock the other boxer out. As soon as you click on that ad banner a multitude of pop up ads start to appear on your computer. There are so many ads that not even your anti-virus, or firewall, software can stop them. You battle the pop ups and close down your browser and you think the war is over. Then you restart your browser and head to your favorite website that has never given you any problems. A couple of minutes into your session you notice that there is activity going on between your browser and a strange website address you have never seen. Then, a minute later, a pop up. Then another. Then another. Suddenly you are fighting the pop up war again and you cannot understand why. You have contracted a virus on your computer known as spyware.

Spyware is a type of virus that gets loaded on to your computer and its only purpose in life is to sell you something, and to send your information to someone else’s website. Spyware causes pop up ads to appear on your computer at a constant rate. More importantly, and even more dangerous than that, spyware is also logging on to a website somewhere and sending some devious marketing firm your internet surfing history: where you have gone, what pages you have looked at, and maybe even what credit cards you are using. They want to know what kinds of advertising you look at on the internet and they want to know what all of your internet buying habits are. They take that information and try to put together an ad campaign that is designed just for you based on your habits. Then they bury your computer in ads that they determine you may actually respond to and use. This, they think, will get you to buy from their clients. Oh, and don’t forget, they may have your credit card information as well.

I could never understand the point of spyware. Do people really respond to it when it is loaded on their computer? Are there really enough people that love getting pop up ads that choke their internet speed down to almost nothing that it warrants a whole industry? I guess I am not the kind of person that would respond to a marketing tactic that is based on using a malicious computer virus and the stealing of my personal information. But apparently there are people that respond to these ads. Enough so that companies still contract with these marketing firms to become part of pop up advertising.

But, in reality, you do not want spyware on your computer. It is malicious and it can be a threat to the safety of your personal information. So what is the best spyware removal tool? Believe it or not the best spyware removal tool is free, very safe, and very easy to get. It is called Ad Aware. If you have a problem with pop up advertising I strongly suggest that you do an internet search for Ad Aware and download it to your computer. You may have to run it a few times but I have found it to be very effective. Also remember that while surfing the internet you should be using the proper firewall and anti-virus software to help protect you from malicious viruses. It may also help if you leave the boxing to the professionals.

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