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Spyware and Malicious Software

You've probably heard of spyware and malware. Learn what it is, how to remove it and how to keep it from coming back.
Malicious Software

Malicious software (malware) is defined as a piece of software that compromises your computer. It can consist of a virus, Trojan horse, spyware and more. Malicious software can do a range of bad things.

It can share or destroy any information you have stored on your pc. It can give someone across the Internet complete access to your PC - they can see your screen and operate your keyboard and mouse. Email spammers can even start using your computer as a source to send out spam (electronic version of junk mail).

All of this can be done without your knowledge or consent. Some people do not even realize they are infected with something. They simply get used to the large number of advertisement pop-ups or don't even know that everything they do on their computer is being watched or recorded.
Prevent Malicious Software

Believe it or not, preventing malicious software is actually not that hard. Follow these guidelines to help reduce your chances of an infection to almost zero:

* Keep your Windows Updates current. For more information see our Windows Update article.

* Use effective antivirus software. For more information see our recommendation on the antivirus section of our recommended software page.

* Do not use an account with Administrator rights. For more information see our Don't be an admin article.

* Use common sense. Don't open attachments from people you do not recognize, and be weary of attachments from people you do know. It is possible that they are infected and unknowingly sent you a copy of the infection.

* Be careful what websites you visit on the Internet. Some of the more "questionable" websites often contain spyware. If you are still using Internet Explorer, it is time to consider switching to Firefox. Learn more on our software alternatives page.

If you can follow these recommendations, your chances of being infected with malware are greatly reduced.
Remove Malicious Software

If you think you are infected with malicious software, you probably are. Symptoms may include: large number of advertisement pop-up windows or your computer runs slow
or crashes.

Depending on the complexity of the infection, you may be able to remove everything yourself. Before proceeding, we recommend you get a good backup of all of your important data.

Begin by obtaining a virus and spyware scan from Kaspersky. You can visit this web page to perform the scan online. We recommend doing the scan online rather than using your current antivirus. If the scan turns up anything, you know you have a problem.

Next you should install a few anti-spyware programs. We recommend Ad-Adware and Spybot.

Download, install and run these programs. Make sure you perform the updates (the software will prompt you to do so) before running a scan. If the programs inform you of an infection, follow the recommended procedure to remove it.

Continue to reboot as necessary and run the above scans until you are told nothing is detected.

These are basic steps to removing spyware. There are more advanced methods for removing spyware, but they are specific to the infection and the techniques are beyond the scope of this article. If you continue to have trouble with spyware you can try our security and stabilization service to wipe it out.