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WHAT IS SPYWARE?

Hidden software that transmits user information via the Internet to advertisers in exchange for free downloaded software and "contain bugs or errors", that can cause problems with the normal operation of your computer. If your web-browser experiences "General Protection Faults", hangs, or freezes it may be due to one or more of these types of programs interfering with its proper function.  

 

Also known as "adware," this hidden software program transmits user information via the Internet to advertisers in exchange for free downloaded software.
What if you could download for free a robust application that allowed you to do almost everything that an expensive, brand-name program did? In exchange for having this incredible application program for free, all you have to do is give your name, address, phone, e-mail, and some other general information. Sounds great, doesn't it? But, what if your personal information was also stored elsewhere on your hard drive, and in this instance, routinely transmitted your personal data via Internet back to advertisers in exchange for more advertising? Now we are talking about spyware, aka adware.

According to one adware company, Radiate, "Consumers can click on banners [within the software] and receive cached Web site pages to view or to order advertised products. When the user goes back online, the appropriate information is sent to the advertiser and tracked by Radiate." Radiate uses a software program called Aureate. It is installed at the same time as the original free application. There are additional companies that offer other free products that do basically the same thing--record a user's browsing habits, then upload that information via the Internet in exchange for more advertising

Warning: Say you grow tired of your free application and use Windows to Add/Remove it from your system. Guess what? The spyware will remain on your computer, often buried within the Windows System Registry.

Note: Removing the spyware program while the freeware is still installed may disable the use of the free application software.

Another potential problem is that many are poorly written, "contain bugs or errors", and can cause problems with the normal operation of your computer. If your web-browser experiences "General Protection Faults", hangs, or freezes it may be due to one or more of these types of programs interfering with its proper function.

How does that work?

1: Happy Netizen 'A' downloads what is apparently a free and useful software utility. "Hooray and thankyou wonderful company for providing me with these free tools to use on my computer" says 'A' gratefully.

2: Netizen 'A' does the usual thing of installing the program without even blinking at the License Agreement or Privacy Policy, that is if they are even there or anything them it pertains to the hidden capabilities of the software.

3: When the program is installed it also bundles in some other extra bits from certain advertising or marketing agencies. These are usually plugins designed for forwarding advertisements to the software that will run when it is being used, ad revenue subsidizes the software so that you get it for free or at a discount, so fair enough the software makers should get something in return for their hard work.

4: Then 'A' gets bored with the software and removes it from their computer, or just doesn't use it.....

5: Why then should 'A's computer suddenly be sending information in the background to a web address they've never heard of before when 'A' connects to the internet? That's right the issue is not that things are being uploaded ie. Banner Ads to run in certain software but that information is being sent without 'A's permission, even when the software it came with isn't being used or has even been removed. The nature of what information is being sent by this sort of software is highly debated. Admittedly in most cases its nothing to worry about, but the fact that it is diificult to remove or stop is cause enough for concern in itself.

6. On Steve Gibsons site you can see full examples of the types of information he discovered was being downloaded by Spyware.