What is it?

Spyware is an invader in your computer. Actually, there are many different types of invader, with names like "adware", "malware", and "foistware", but they all have one thing in common: they are garbage and you don't want them. For our purposes though, it will all be referred to as spyware.

What does it do?

Spyware can do many things. The main mission of all of it is to send you "popup" advertisements or control your access to the Internet by forcing you to use the services they've installed. Some types also act as data collectors, literally "spying" on what you do and where you go, then sending that information to whoever is collecting it for marketing purposes. Some of them act as introductions, attempting to lure you into an agreement to install programs that, in turn, add many more without asking.

If confronted, the perpetrators will claim that it is a legal marketing technique (unfortunately still true), and harmless (generally true). They will also claim that the "customer" also "chose to install our software" (true, but sleazy). Some go so low to claim that the victim got a virus or trojan and it's not their fault (probably not true, and who wrote the virus?). This is if they give any response at all; complaints are typically ignored, and companies have countered "customer" threats with threats of their own.

The problems start with volume. A single piece of functioning spyware is mildly irritating, and that's all. But when you have 20…100…1000 pieces loaded! When there are so many loaded that the ads come continuously, in dozens. When they start to conflict with each other and malfunction. When there are so many that your computer has no RAM left to run the programs you want. Or, eventually and finally, when you can't use your computer anymore. At that point, "harmless" spyware was fatal.

And then there are "hijackers" that change your homepage, or intrude to "help" you every time you try to access the Internet. You endlessly tell them to go away, turn them off, even uninstall them and they keep coming back. Whether they send you ads or spy or not, you've lost control of your own computer.

How do I know if I have any of it?

If you browse on the Internet, you already have some or soon will. Spyware's symptoms are popup ads, increasingly poor performance, intrusive programs and a variety of other odd behaviors and errors.

How did I get it?

Spyware is the most pervasive problem on the Internet because it is so easy to give it to the victim. Many examples are downloaded as "cookies" (temporary mini-programs) just by visiting a website, or exploit the controls that reputable companies use to display their pages. You can turn off these controls and block the cookies if you like, but then you can't use the sites you want either. Others appear as attractive contests, games or deals, and using them opens the door for more garbage. At the lower end of advertising ethics, some lie to you about updates you need, or "problems" you have that they can solve with a click. Even lower is presenting you with no obvious options to escape from their page, or reopening over and over until you pick the option they want.

So what can I do about it?

Change your browsing habits, do some research, and get good tools.

Spyware as a programming art form is continuously escalating in sophistication, and it's becoming harder to beat their tricks. At one point, merely clearing your "cookies" would help a lot, but some cookies now defend themselves against being removed. It used to be that finding the spyware by program name and deactivating it would work, but now some will rename themselves at random to retaliate.

If you want to control the junk, you do have some options:

1. Don't click on "Yes". If something you didn't ask for is offered, as a rule, hit the "X" to close it. Big red flags are offers to enhance your performance, anything with a prize, anything "adult" or illicit. If the lure is tantalizing, it's a lure. If an unexpected upgrade is offered by popup, even from "Microsoft", close it and go to the actual site for the upgrade. If there is no "X" or it's disabled, or you can't tell from reading what option to pick, the company is up to no good. Try a right-click and choose "close" on the program down on the Start bar…even that may not work. You either have to decide to trust the offered "No", or close the Internet entirely using Ctrl+Alt+Del. (Note that if you have opened a "Pop Up Bomb" -- a hundred pops at once at high speed -- closing one Internet Explorer entry using Ctrl+Alt+Del will usually get you out of all of them.)

2. Ask the "experts". Your support technicians at your Internet service may know what you have picked up and how to handle it. Or, if you are curious about the odd error or program name that keeps popping up, try doing a search for it on the internet (if you still can)…if people are angry about a program, you'll know within the first few results, and some of the technicians writing on the pages may have figured out how to stop it if you look at a few entries.

3. Get a "spyware scanner", keep it updated, and run it regularly. Some people will swear by a "popup killer", but that only treats the symptoms while leaving the garbage installed in your system. In addition, they may block webpage services that are legitimate and that you want, and some are not sophisticated enough to work against newer schemes. As for what scanner to get, here are two suggestions, both free to download on www.download.com:

a. Ad Aware - The main advantage is that it's small enough to fit on a floppy disk, so if you can't get to the Internet on your own PC, you can try downloading a copy on another one and bringing it home…it may save you a repair bill.

b. Spybot - Spybot Search & Destroy is more thorough, and has an immunize function. Even if you use AdAware to get some control back, eventually move to Spybot.

Note that the two can conflict with each other and try to remove pieces of their opposite. Stick with the Spybot once you get it.

In both cases, update your scanner and run it every week or two, or if the system starts losing control of itself again.

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