Which Anti-Spyware Program Should You Get?
Spyware? Yes, spyware.
These are programs created to actually gather information about you through your computer and submit this information to the creator of the program.
The information gathering can be fairly innocent such as checking your type of operating system (Windows, Linux, Mac, or what version of each) to something more sinister - such as tracking keystrokes or attempting to enter into keyring programs.
What are keyring programs and keystrokes? Well, simply put, whenever you type in a password and logon for a site, the typing act is called a 'keystroke' on the computer.
Since everything with computers works in binary, a spyware program monitoring your keystrokes can easily pick up what your passwords and logons for certain sites are.
Anybody can see where THAT is going.
If it can't do that, it may attempt to try and access a keyring program on your PC.
These are programs that keep your passwords and logons so that when you go to those sites you don't have to retype them in.
Remember when Internet Explorer or Firefox asks if it should remember a certain password? Well, when you say "yes" it keeps these passwords in a 'keyring' program.
Spyware may attempt to get in there, grab all your logon and passwords, and send these to the author of the program.
All in all, spyware can get pretty nasty really fast and that is why you need an anti spyware program to get rid of this illegal nuisance on your computer.
What anti spyware program should you get? So, you acknowledge you might have spyware, now its a matter of which any spy ware program you should get.
You may have seen that there is plenty on the internet to choose from - but not all of them are the best choice.
Some of them are even fake, or spyware themselves.
So, make sure the anti-spyware can do the following: 1)Protect your web browser from hijacking - when the browser goes wherever the spyware tells it go, rather than where you tell it to go.
2)Starts up automatically, so that any spyware can get zapped before it zaps the anti spyware.
3)Gives you a proactive scan - sorting out any spyware before it can so much as smell your computer.
4)Scan the registry of Windows, as well as any processes and all the applications.
5)Keep a log of whatever it does, for reference.
For legitimacy reasons, any anti spyware must have Windows Certification and also be from a reputable company.
Do a check on the company and the software before purchasing anything, just to make sure you are not getting spyware disguised as anti spyware or you are being duped and getting something fake.