Most of us have heard horror stories of how somebody's bank account was wiped clean after passwords or banking information were stolen from their computers by unknown people.
Spyware is usually to blame for these crimes.
Spyware has different definitions according to different computer security companies.
They all accept the fact that spyware are malicious and can install themselves without the owner of the computer noticing.
Spyware have one goal which is, to spy.
And as we know, a spy is not supposed to be uncovered.
Spyware can lurk in your computer for months and you might never notice them.
Spyware are made to enumerate.
Enumeration is a hacking technique that requires secretly gathering information without revealing yourself or arousing suspicion and spyware does exactly that.
Without the proper knowledge of how to get rid of spyware and most importantly protect yourself from them, you are a walking target.
Free is expensive, most free programs can come with the cost of spyware attached.
Spyware coders know that people always love free stuff and will at times make free software that actually works but attach the spyware and you might never notice.
Be sure to download free programs that have been pre-tested before installing.
Purchase genuine always up to date anti spyware software.
This anti spyware scans your computer for known spyware and also for any suspicious activity like unauthorized programs trying to initiate an internet connection or send information.
On how to get rid of spyware, firewalls play an important role.
A firewall that filters traffic in both directions is preferred to an inbound traffic firewall, this because spyware will try to send information from your computer to a host on the internet.
Install email scanners and filters to scan incoming emails for spyware.
Also never open suspicious emails especially from unknown senders.
Encryption and traffic content filtering is vital on getting rid of spyware.
Encrypting your important and sensitive information is good because even if spies get your information they will not be able to make since off it.
There is content filtering software that scans your traffic for specific information that you provide it with.
For example if you key in your credit card number, it will check and block any traffic that contains the credit card number and ask you to confirm if you authorized sending.
If you discover that you computer has been compromised, switch off the internet immediately.