What is spyware?
Loosely any program that sits on your system and
watches what you do. One type of spyware, called
adware, observes your web-surfing habits, and then
delivers targetted banner and pop-up ads to your web
browser, based on those preferences. Others, even
more depraved, can capture every key you press,
saving them to either a local file or to a machine
half a world away.
In most cases, you downloaded that spyware
yourself when you installed another program or
visited a wanton website. Shareware and freeware are
notorious conduits, installing a wide range of
pernicious applications that track what you do and
where you go on the web. The popular file sharing
application Kazaa installs a nasty application
called Cydoor – which then loads and runs without
your knowledge. Cydoor downloads programs to your
PC, along with ads and other nonsense.
Other spyware programs, with wacky names like
Xupiter and Gator, actually gather personal
information stored on your PC – including which
programs are installed and what web-browser you run
-- and then transmit it to their corporate servers.
And Kazaa competitor Grokster downloads an
incredible 13 different spyware applications --
Cydoor, Gator and eleven others – all designed to
ferret out your personal habits, preferences and
secrets.
The Real Nasty Stuff: But those are
chicken feed compared to the possibly disastrous spy
programs – called key loggers or system monitors
-- that actually watch and record everything you do.
These scary programs, with names like WinWhatWhere
and Back Orifice, essentially save every letter,
number and word you type into your PC, and then use
the internet to transmit that information anywhere
in the world.
These programs steal credit cards and passwords
– imagine the resulting mischief if your eBay
password or Visa card were hijacked. Often they get
installed by jealous lovers, who want to discover
whether honey-pie is instant messaging with his old
teammates or his old girlfriend.
At work, your boss, a competitor, or that
snot-nosed kid in the nearby cubicle could be
watching everything you do – just waiting to steal
your next big idea, or catch you goofing off.
Some of these nasty programs even secretly turn
on your webcam, and covertly spy on you while you
use your PC.
In the past, delinquents had to actually touch
your PC to install these key-loggers and system
monitors. But more ruthless versions have recently
been unleashed that can be installed via email –
without you ever knowing about it. Open a seemingly
benign message from your husband or your boss, and
suddenly he knows everything you do on your PC –
even when you secretly shake and shimmy to Brittany
Spears.
You would think this stuff would be against the
law, and in many cases it is. But often you actually
opened up the door, rolled out the red carpet, and
invited the rogue program to sleep in your bed. How?
Remember that legalese you ignored while installing
a recently downloaded program? When you clicked OK,
you might have agreed to share all your precious
computing secrets with some nameless, faceless
corporation. And who knows what they're going to do
with it!
So what do you do? Two or three years ago
your options were limited. But recently we've seen
an explosion of software products that will detect
this nasty stuff, and then remove it from your
system. Even better, some of these programs are
actually free.
And you'll really need one of these programs too.
You used to be able to avoid spyware by simply
practicing safe computing habits – never
downloading applications, deleting mail from
strangers, and avoiding pop-up windows and banners.
But those days are over, as more sophisticated
spyware programs get hidden inside normal looking
websites, pop-up windows and emails.
Another reason why these spyware detectors are a
good idea: it's often not possible to eradicate them
by yourself. Even if you located and deleted the
program files on your hard drive, like weeds, many
spyware programs have an uncanny ability to
reinstall themselves when you turn your back.
Spyware management programs can be broken up into
two basic categories. The first, called scanners,
simply rifle through your computer's hard drive and
system memory to tell you which shameless sneaks
have wormed their way in. These are often free –
and some are even web-based, which means you don't
have to download anything at all. I ended up using a
free scanner called Spy Sweeper, from WebRoot
Software to uncover those 38 interlopers
on my system.
The second, more powerful type of application,
will then eradicate that spyware from your system.
The more advanced will first quarantine those rogue
programs into a walled-off area of your PC – this
de-activates the program, but lets you selectively
re-install them to run a dependent application –
like Kazaa or Grokster. The programs typically cost
around $30 or so – although 30 day trial versions
are usually available for free.
Of course there is a third option. If you really
want to avoid spyware you can unplug your phone-line
or broadband connection from your PC, lock it in a
closet and only compute in the dark. Don't laugh,
this is what some folks in our government actually
do. For the rest of us, a good anti-spyware
application is not only a good idea, it's almost
mandatory these days. Unless you don't mind your
life really becoming an open book.
