Adware  •  Why is adware bad?  •  How does it get on my computer?  •  What's the difference between adware and Spyware?  •  An informant with a spy camera  •  What do the bad guys do with my information?  •  What does a Spyware

removal and prevention program do for me?  •  When should I run my Spyware removal program?

Adware and Spyware

What is Adware and Spyware?

The terms Spyware and adware have come to be used as meaning the same thing because they are both information-gathering programs and sometimes  - that's very bad.

Adware

When you use a program that shows ad banners while you're using it, that's adware.  It's not much different than billboards on the freeway or banner ads at the grocery store.  No information is sent back to the advertiser unless you agree to it by filling out a form or asking for more information.

Advertising Supported Software - adware,  is also a system by which advertisers collect information about your surfing habits to better market their products.  It's installed directly on your computer by these advertisers and by those who gather information to sell to advertisers.  Adware also assists browsers and music programs adjust to your preferences.  There's really nothing wrong with legitimate adware, and the privacy invasion is strictly for your benefit.  It doesn't care who you are, it only wants your product usage information in general.

Why is adware bad?

Adware is not necessarily malicious - unlike a virus, it isn't developed to harm your computer or your programs - nor is it illegal; however, it does gather information about you with or without your knowledge, and it does install itself on your computer, with or without your permission.

This can slow down your computer because you have programs you don't know anything about running in the background, using up your usage capacity which can cause your computer to crash.  Usage capacity is how many programs your computer can run at once without overloading.

How does it get on my computer?

Adware programs are included in downloads you know about and downloads you don't know about.

Adware installs itself on your computer when you download certain shareware programs, click on certain banner ads, install certain music set-ups, download certain games, install certain games from a CD and then register, etc.  There is no way for you to know ahead of time whether or not you are opening your computer to adware unless part of the installation informs you - sometimes this information is contained in the license or user agreement.

Because some of the programs you want to install on your computer will not install without the adware, making decisions can be difficult.  Do you really want to play those games and listen to music using that player?  You can always contact the developer and/or merchant to find out what kind of information they are gathering, and whether they keep the information to themselves or sell it to third parties.  Downloading from reputable, well-known companies is a good thing - ones that provide you with an easy contact system so you can ask your questions and decide if the information they gather really matters to you or not.

What's the difference between adware and Spyware?

The terms adware and Spyware are interchangeable; however, while "adware" specifically refers to marketing information and has no interest in your personal information, Spyware can be malicious.  Spyware wants more than just your preferred music and favorite sites information.

Malicious Spyware wants your personal, private information.

Spyware programs can be contained in almost anything you click on while surfing and in your emails.  You have no way of knowing the download happened.

An informant with a spy camera

Spyware on your computer is the same as an informant with a spy camera.  Like a mole, it crawls through all your files, takes note of where you go, grabs your email address book, copies your chats, records your online banking sites, looks at your credit card information, picks up your user names and passwords, and more.

If you think you don't keep any personal information on your computer, you're wrong.  You see, almost everything you do on the Internet is listed on your hard drive.  It's located in temporary files, cookie files, browser favorites files, temporary download files, email address files, log-in files, cache files, and history files.  Spyware sees it all and sends it back to the Spyware author.  That's why it's vital to remove your Internet tracks immediately!

What do the bad guys do with my information?

The bad guys sell your information.  It's that simple.  They can sell it as many as a thousand times in a single week.  And that's bad.  Real bad.  That means your credit card information, banking information, name and address, email address book, and whatever else they can use is sent out to criminals all over the world. 

Your information is then used to create phony credit cards to buy merchandise, apply for loans, commit crimes, create phony driver's licenses and ID cards, create phony passports, apply for jobs using your Social Security Number (it doesn't take much personal information for them to get your SSN from the Internet), and send Spyware-infected emails to everyone in your email address book - posing as you.

What does an adware/Spyware removal and prevention program do for me?

Because there is no way for you to know in advance whether or not that next click will install spyware on your computer, programs have been developed that search your entire hard drive for adware and Spyware fingerprints - bits and pieces of information-gathering code.

The first thing an adware removal program does is identify the owner of the adware and offers you the choice of which ones you want to delete and which ones you will allow.  For instance, you may want to keep a certain piece of adware because you know that the information it's collecting means you will be offered products and choices that interest you.  You know the vendor, and you know which download the adware is servicing.

Once you've made your keep or delete choices, it puts up a guard and, depending on the developer and the options you choose, notifies you each time there is an installation attempt and asks whether or not you want to block the installation.  This is particularly important if you have to make one of those tough game, music, or video download decisions.

When should I run my Spyware removal program?

Just in case you've allowed a program to install despite the attached adware and then change your mind, you can have your adware removal program scan your hard drive(s) whenever you want.  This is really an important feature because you can uninstall a program only to find out that the adware part stayed on your computer.

You can program your adware/Spyware removal program to automatically run every day at startup or you can manually run it when you choose.  Some removal programs will alert you with a sound when there is an installation attempt, if that's what you want it to do.  Regardless of the choices you make, the program should be run every day.  You'll be surprised at what you find.