BH #1 - Spyware

Spyware

Most people have heard about it by now. Most have been a victim, but some not aware of it. Sometimes you may even see products on t.v. that is supposed to block it. But what is it really. Short answer, it's just as bad as a virus, but is legal in most areas/countries. Let me explain. Spyware is a program that is installed on your computer, sometimes without your knowledge, that may collect information about the websites you are viewing, and sending that information to marketing companies. It may also display various popup ads on your computer. This form of spyware is also known as Adware. It may even collect personal information, such as your name, mailing address, phone number, e-mail addresses stored on your computer, etc. But ultimately, all spyware invades your privacy in one form or another.

The thought probably has already formed in your mind. "How do I get it, and how do I get rid of it? Isn't it illegal for companies to use spyware?" What about this software people advertise to get rid fo spyware? We'll cover each of these questions.

The main way that people end up with spyware installed is through innocent web browsing. Depending on the security settings of your web browser, it may automaticly run various java, ocx controls, etc. Sometimes you may get a little popup window asking you if you really want to download it, install it, etc. There may even be a fancy licensing agreement you must agree to. Now how many of you have clicked "yes I agree" to some piece of software without actually reading the agreement? Bad idea. You should read every license agreement. The companies that are using spyware legally must include details about the spyware in the agreement. Some spyware is even attached to various applications that you may download and run. These programs include most file shareing programs, weatherbug, etc. Sure, these programs sound neat, and they're free oooh boy! Remember, there is never a free lunch. You are paying for those programs with your privacy, and lost bandwidth due to the ads that are displayed. Every seen one of those fancy search toolbars? Ever install one? Most likely it was bundled with spyware.

But how do you know if your infected? (yes I said infected, because that's pretty much what these programs do. They are a cancer to the internet.) One sign may be that you are recieving an abnormal ammount of popups on pages that have never had them before. You may also notice your internet connection slowing down. (due to the extra bandwidth used) For every user of Microsoft OS's (win9x, win2k, win ME, winXP, etc.) I highly recomend downloading and installing spyware removal programs. There are two that I recomend are Spybot Search and Destroy, and Ad Aware.

Spybot can be found at http://www.security.kolla.de. It is freeware. (please see their website for more details)

The other one is called Ad Aware. It can be found at http://www.lavasoft.de. Ad Aware is free for non-commerical use. (please see their website for details)

Spybot will not only scan your computer, but will also remove spyware, as well as "immunize" Internet Explorer, wich helps prevent future downloads of spyware. Remember, when you first install these programs, you should run the update portion of the programs to make sure their current spyware definitions are up to date. Then do the spyware scan. Even if you do not think you have spyware installed, run them anyway. What you will find may surprise you. Remember though, some spyware you remove may also invalidate your license to use some of those programs you downloaded. (such as the fileshareing programs, etc.) Some of those programs may not even work after you remove the spyware. Please be aware of this, and decide what is most important to you. Now you're probably wondering why I suggest that you use both of these programs. Well, as we all know, software isn't perfect. It takes time to collect the needed information for the spyware definitions. New spyware is created every day. Well, what one program misses, the other program will catch. Ad Aware does have extra features if you register it. They also have different versions for I.T. professionals, as well as corporations. Both are worth checking into. If you know of any others that you feel should be mentioned, please e-mail us, and we will include them in future articles.

Also, make sure you review your Internet Explorer security settings. In a browser window, click on tools, then click on internet options. Review and get familure with every setting in there. This will do wonders for keeping out the garbage. If you are using winXP, you can use the manage addons selection. This gives a finer control over what is installed in your browser. As far as the windows firewall, I'll save that for a future article. Let's just say I'm not impressed.
Another thing worth checking on your computer, is the add/remove programs area in your windows control panel. Just click on the start button, click settings, then click control panel. Then click on the icon that says add/remove programs. This will show you a list of everything installed on your computer. Read through the list, and look for things you have not installed, or things you know shouldn't be there. If you remove something you shouldn't have, just re-install it. Unless the person who wrote the spyware program is very crafty, it will show up in the list. Wild Tangent, as well as a few others will show up here.

Now, this next tip may not be available with all versions of Windows. Click the start button, then click run, type msconfig, then press enter. When the little box pops up, click the startup tab. This is a listing of almost everything that runs when your computer boots. Sort through the list, and uncheck the things you don't want to startup. This is helpful if you have stubborn spyware that doesn't un-install properly. Also, under the first tab, be sure you choose selective startup. Otherwise, everything will startup that's on the list. There are a few other interesting things in here as well. Take time to explore. Just be careful when you tinker. (note: if you don't know what you are doing, make sure you have a backup of all your data)

Now this tip is not for computer noobs. Yes, I'm talking about editing the registry. (please please backup your data before you attempt this. It is also a good idea to keep a backup copy of your registry in case your bork things up) Click the start button, click run, type regedit in the little box, and press enter. This will open the registry editor. Now, you need to know the name of the spyware program you are searching for here. Click Edit in the menu bar, click find, and enter the name of the spyware entries you are looking for. Once you find the key you are looking for, delete it. Continue doing this until you can't find any more, then reboot. If you feel aprehensive about editing your registry, contact your local guru for assistance.

This last tip is for when all else fails. You break it. No no, not your computer, just break the spyware program. How? It's simple. Click the start button, click search, all files and folders. In the box that says "Enter a word or phrase in the file", type in the name of the spyware you are looking for. What we are doing here is searching the contents of every file in your hard drive for the text you entered. So if you typed in gator (another well known spyware product), then any file that had the word "gator" in it will show up in the search results. Sort through your search results, and delete the ones that you can recognize as spyware. (again, contact your local computer guru if you are confused)

One more preventative measure you can take, if you have the technological knowledge. (In other words, I'm not going into it in detail) Get a cheap, spare machine, install a flavor of Unix or Linux, set it up as a firewall, configure squid for a web proxy, and have it block access to a list of known websites that display ads, popups, spyware, etc. You can find a pre-made list for squid at this site.
http://pgl.yoyo.org/adservers/serverlist.php?hostformat=squid-dstdom-regex

They also have other formats, and instructions on blocking ads and other interesting things.
Final thoughts: Spyware, adware, popups, and internet ads in general are like a cancer to the internet. Make sure you always practice safe browsing habits. Get involved with your government officials. Urge them to pass tougher laws regarding spyware. (depending on where you live, your mileage may vary) Talk to others, and make sure they are aware of the problem. Once it becomes unprofitable for these companies to use spyware, they'll stop. (once every computer is spyware free, they will no longer have a reason to use spyware)
Just my two cents. Your mileage may vary.

-=databat=-

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