Spyware and adware are infecting personel computers at an alarming rate. Research
shows that over 80% of home and office systems have spyware installed. Research
also shows that many of these machines contain other forms of malware. Some forms
of malware act like spyware in that they can track user activities such as what
websites were visited, files accessed, and applications used.
Advertising firms use the information gathered from spyware to better
direct thier advertising efforts on sites you visit. They also sell this
information to other companies that send you unsolicited emails advertising
thier products and services.
Some advertising firms sneakily install software on a system that displays an
advertisement for a few minutes. This software is known as adware and comes
in many forms such as banner displays, window pop-ups, search toolbars, website displays
and various other forms of unwanted ads. Adware is annoying and in some cases can
track user activities.
Spyware and adware are not the only threat infecting systems these days. There
is a growing criminal element of people on the internet that want to steal users
bank accounts or steal information that they can sell to the highest bidder.
Thieves install software called trojans which allow them to control the computer and transfer
valuable information they can resell or backmail the user into paying to have
the information returned.
Identity theft is the fastest growing problem on the internet.
Thieves install keyloggers which allow the thief to capture the user's credit
card number or bank account credentials and empty the accounts.
A keylogger can capture everything typed by the user even the passwords to
every website the user has access to on the internet. This makes company
websites and personal websites vulnerable to attack. |
