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Spyware, Bots, and Adware (collectively referred to as malware) have reached epidemic proportions on the Internet and are causing major problems for computer users. This page attempts to provide information on what malware is, how you get it and what to do if you have it.What is Spyware?Spyware is software installed to track your movements on the Internet. It's main purpose is to inform others where you go on the Internet. This information is valuable to advertisers. Spyware by itself is mostly just annoying - it's real problem is when it is combined with Adware. So what is Adware?Adware was originally a term for software that was made available to end users in exchange for agreeing to view advertisements. Software that you would normally have to pay for was made available for free in exchange for allowing the manufacturer (or their agent) to display advertisements on your machine. Weatherbug is a example of Adware (in the original sense - advertisements on your computer in exchange for weather information). Note that Weatherbug is to the best of our knowledge a respectable and legitimate Adware supported application. We are not suggesting that there is anything nefarious about Weatherbug. What's a Bot?A Bot is an abbreviation for 'robot' - in this case a program that runs on your computer (usually unknown to you) and is controlled by another person or group. Bots are used to collect private information from your computer, to attack other computers, and to distribute files (usually stolen computer programs, videos, music, and/or pornography). Ok - so what is a virus?A virus is any program that is designed to spread itself between computers. Most viruses require some type of action from the computer user to spread. Viruses have been written that destroy information, steal information, install Bots, attempt to cure other viruses and even send spam. Worms are a special type of virus that spread without user action. Worms are relatively rare and while they can cause major problems they are not a huge issue for most end users. These all sound related. Are they?Yep - and that's were things get really ugly. Spyware watches where you go on the Internet and reports that to advertisers. The advertisers then feed the information on what you are interested in to the Adware so that advertisements pop up on your screen. Viruses install Bots which are then used to compromise other computers, send spam, and attack other computers. So how do Adware, Viruses, Spyware and Bots get on your computer?In many cases you unwittingly install them yourself. Some viruses and worms exploit flaws in the Windows operating system, Internet Explorer (a web browser - the program most people use to display web pages), or Outlook Express (a program to read email). Some web sites attempt to trick you into installing malicious software. So how do you recognize malicious software and how do I keep it off of my machine?Well - it's pretty much just like the real world - be very suspicious of things that appear to be free. Ask yourself if you really need whatever it is that is being offered. Do you really need to install that cute screensaver? The popup blocker? There are only a couple of programs that need to be installed to see the content on most websites - Macromedia Flash Player, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Sun Java, and Apple Quicktime. Websites asking you to install other viewers, plug-ins (a program that adds additional functions to a web browser), etc. should be considered with suspicion. Many malware programs are disguised as Toolbars or Popup Blockers. A toolbar is a special type of plug-in that adds additional functions to a web browser. Some common toolbars are the Google Toolbar, Yahoo Toolbar, and MSN Toolbar. Toolbars from the major vendors (like those listed above) are safe and provide useful functions - other lesser known toolbars are almost always malware and should be avoided. A Popup Blocker is a program that claims to block popup advertisements (a window that opens by itself with an advertisement in it) from showing up on your machine. Nearly every free popup blocker is really spyware or adware itself. DO NOT be fooled by advertisements claiming you have Spyware on your machine. A box popping up and claiming you have spyware is nothing more than advertising designed to trick you into buying 'anti-spyware' software of dubious value. What else do I need to do?Keep your machine up to date with software patches. Microsoft Windows (all versions) has multiple vulnerabilities and new security problems are found on a regular basis. Keeping up to date with the patches is not difficult but does require you to visit Windows Update (assuming you are running Windows) on a regular basis. Install any 'Critical Security Updates' that are recommended for your machine. How can you tell if you have a malware on your machine?There are a few signs - any of these are bad:
How do I remove spyware, viruses, adware, etc.?If you are unfortunate enough to have your machine infected the only sure cure is to reformat the hard drive and reinstall the operating system. The problem with this method is that you also lose any information you have stored on your machine. In some cases this is the ONLY way to make the machine functional again. ALL new computers come with either a restore disk (most name brand computers including Macs) or a original copy of Windows. This disk can be used to restore the computer software to the state it was in when the computer was new. There are software programs designed to remove malicious programs from the computer. The success of these programs varies - for obvious reasons there is a war between the companies writing the malware and the the programs designed to remove them. There are several programs that we trust to remove spyware - AdAware, Spybot Search and Destroy and Microsoft's AntiSpyware (note - the Microsoft product is a 'beta' version meaning it is not quite ready for official release and the link to the software may change). The first two programs (AdAware, Spybot Search and Destroy ) will remove adware but will not protect you from getting it again. Microsoft's AntiSpyware will both remove existing spyware and help prevent new infections. Many other programs that claim to remove spyware actually install it - we can ONLY recommend the ones listed above. TrendMicro has a online virus scanner available for free use. This is an inexpensive way to scan your computer for viruses. Many virus scanners do not consider Spyware/Adware to be a virus and may either ignore it completely or alert you to it's presence but not remove it. You get to decide if that's a bug or a feature. What is a firewall?'Firewall' is a generic term for a program or hardware device designed to provide a filter between your computer (or network) and the Internet. There are many types of firewalls and the terminology has become very confusing. The most common types of firewall for home and small offices are:
Do I need a firewall?Tough question. Every day someone calls in with a problem caused by a mis-configured firewall. As best we can tell most software firewalls are too complicated to make them worth the hassle.
What about AntiVirus Software?Again this is something of a tough question. Most viruses continue to be spread by email though it appears to be slowing down a bit. Many mail providers (Amplex included) filter all mail through a virus scanner before delivering it to you. If your going to run a virus scanner please keep it up to date and read the documentation included. Many email problems are caused by mis-configured virus scanners.
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