Jun 16, 2008, 13:02 GMT
Washington - Protecting yourself against spyware is no simple task. First, you have to be able to identify exactly what spyware is. Then you need to be knowledgeable enough to know which tools can protect you - and when their warning of infections can be safely ignored. And finally, you should know precautions that you can take to keep from getting spyware in the first place.
Q: What's the difference between spyware, malware, and viruses?
Spyware, as its name suggests, involves some element of eavesdropping on your activities while online. That eavesdropping can cover a range of activities, from logging your keystrokes to tracking your Internet activities or noting the Web sites you visit so that advertisers can push targeted ads at you.
Computer viruses, strictly speaking, are computer programs that mimic organic viruses in that once they infect your computer, they can spread throughout the machine or infect other computers with which you have contact. Before the Internet became popular, viruses were spread by sharing infected floppy disks or CDs. Now, viruses can be spread much more easily and quickly over the Internet or through files transmitted by e-mail.
Malware is a more general category that can include both spyware and viruses but more specifically refers to any software that is created to do harm to you, your computer, or other computers with which you have a connection.
Q: How often should I run my anti-spyware software?
A: If you're using one of the free anti-spyware tools, run it at least every month, more frequently if you tend to visit sites from which spyware is typically contracted, particularly gaming, gambling, and adults-only sites.
Many experts recommend that if you rely upon free anti-spyware programs, you install and run several on a monthly basis. But be sure you stick to the well-known and well-respected programs, such as Ad-Aware SE, Microsoft's Windows Defender, or Spybot Search and Destroy. There are literally dozens of 'free' anti-spyware programs on the market that are themselves suspected of being spyware or carrying malware. For a complete list of these 'rogue' programs, see the Spyware Warrior Web site (http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm).
Q: When I run my anti-spyware program, it completes successfully but then always finds the same thing if I re-run it: something about cookies. Why is that?
A: Some anti-spyware programs routinely flag cookies as potential spyware. A cookie is nothing more than a text file that is used to identify you to some Web sites that you visit frequently or have registered with. Cookies are harmless, but some people consider a Web site's depositing a cookie on the machine as an invasion of privacy, so anti-spyware programs often alert you to the existence of them.
Generally, however, you'll note that the results of potential spyware threats are flagged with different colours or different symbols by the various anti-spyware applications. Cookies are rarely flagged with as highly dangerous, however. You'll save time if you use the options available in your anti-spyware application to identify the level of threat you wish to ignore. You should also regularly allow the anti-spyware software to update its signature files, since errors in spyware detection or overly aggressive behaviour is sometimes corrected in these updates.
Q: How can I protect myself from spyware without installing anti-spyware software?
A: If you're loathe to become dependent upon yet another category of software to protect yourself from threats, you're not alone. The good news is that anti-spyware components are now routinely incorporated into the popular anti-virus programs on the market, so you may not need to do anything more than update your antivirus tool.
There are other steps you can take, though, even if you don't have an antivirus program. Keeping your operating system - and particularly your Web browser - up to date is critical. Operating system and browser vendors work just as hard as anti-spyware companies to make sure that holes through which spyware can sneak are closed. Also, anti-spyware controls are increasingly being built in to browsers and operating systems. The Windows Defender tool, for example, is available as an optional component when you update Windows online. Also,
- - Have a computer question? Send it to the Computer Helper at jayd@csi.com.
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