What Is Spyware N How Does It Affect Your System

Spyware is a type of malware that is installed on computers without the user's consent .
Spyware goes about collecting small amounts of information at a time about you . What information spyware collects may be relatively harmless and have little or no impact on you or it may lethal and inflict life-altering consequences on you !
Before the Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7 was released , the browser would automatically show an install window for any ActiveX component that a website wanted to install . The combination of user ignorance towards malicious software and the assumption by Internet Explorer that ActiveX components are harmless , helped in the massive spread of spyware . Spyware software also takes advantage of weaknesses in Javascript , Internet Explorer , and Windows to install itself on your computer without your knowledge or permission .
Unlike viruses and worms , spyware does not usually self-replicate . Like typical viruses , spyware exploits infected computers for commercial gain . Typical tactics include delivery of unsolicited pop-up advertisements , theft of personal information such as credit card and social security numbers , monitoring of
your internet surfing activity for targeted marketing purposes , and routing you to advertising sites you probably don't want to go to nor would you want your family members to go there either .
The most common way spyware gets installed on your system is by piggybacking on a software product that you want . In some cases , spyware programmers have paid shareware authors to bundle spyware with their software . In other cases , spyware programmers have repackaged freeware with installers that deliver the spyware to your computer . Typically , an affected computer will have multiple infections of spyware . You will notice the degradation of your computer's performance , a significant increase in your computer processor's activity and probably your disk also . You might also see a significant uptick in network traffic . Other signs of spyware infestation may be system crashes in the form of application failure or the blue screen of death .
How to Remove Spyware ?
There are several anti-spyware products dedicated to the removal or blocking of spyware . A good anti-spyware software product will provide real-time protection against the installation of spyware on your computer by scanning all incoming network data and blocking any spyware it encounters . A good anti-spyware software product will also provide ( user specified ) scheduled scans of your computer to find and remove any spyware installed on your system . While a high quality anti-spyware software product is important to have installed on your computer , it is also extremely important that you keep your system updated with the latest security/critical fixes to Windows and to whatever internet browser you are using , i .e . Internet Explorer , Mozilla Firefox , Opera , Google Chrome , etc . If you are using Internet Explorer , you need to upgrade to Internet Explorer 9 which is Microsoft's most secure and advanced version.