Have You Invited A Spy Into Your Computer?

Yes, it's true. You may have inadvertently invited a spy into your computer. This spy is known as "spyware, adware, or trojans", and once it is in your computer it starts taking statistical information as you travel the Internet. In some cases, it may send you pop-up ads and slow down your computer. A wired.com article, mentions it "could even collect your credit card information".

How did you invite the spy?

Maybe you visited a website you knew and enjoyed only to find that it was recently purchased by a pornography site. The new company has imbedded "spyware" into the home page and now, in many cases without your knowledge, it is on your computer.

Maybe you downloaded a free or paid program and as part of the package you were provided with an added secret bonus ? a "spyware" program. Spyware may also be placed on CD's you purchase, too.

Maybe you agreed to it! You could have downloaded a program and checked the box to allow the program to take statistics from you "for their own use".

Maybe someone sent you spam, especially porn spam, and that spam created the spy. Spys can easily be placed, without your knowledge, in pictures or HTML email.

What you can do?

Purchase a firewall program and it should let you know if a program is about to download from the website you are at. Note the word "should".

Or you can learn all about spyware, download an anti-spyware program, and schedule time in your weekly calendar to run an anti-spyware program. The first time I conducted a "clean up", on my 18-month old computer, I found 2 porn and 42 other spyware programs. Then a week later, I had 4 new spyware files appear.

To further reduce the amount of spyware that ends up in your e-mail Inbox, create a "rule" or "filter" that will move any e-mail containing "certain adult words of your choosing" directly to your delete or spam folder.

Norton and MacAfee the virus protection specialists, have added anti-spy programs to the list of maintenance programs they sell. However, according to information I've seen on email lists, they're not as anywhere as good as the Ad-aware program from Lavasoft.

Just a note: If a few people use your computer and each has their own log in password, when you run LavaSoft program, you need to run it under each password. Example: Let's say Katie and Molly have passwords on your computer. Log in as Katie and run Lava Soft. Then log out of Katie, and log in as Molly and "run the program again." I'm sure, you'll find additional spys under each log in name ? just like I did last weekend when I cleaned and updated a friend's computer.

Use the resources below to help you learn more about Spy's:

Learn about protecting your computer from spam and spyware
http://www.unwantedlinks.com/
http://grc.com/optout.htm
http://www.spyware.co.uk/

Check for spyware on new software before you download it.
http://www.spychecker.com/

Free anti-spyware program.
Use it at least monthly and don't delete the items you really want! http://www.lavasoft.de/

Opt out of double click ads
http://www.doubleclick.com/us/corporate/privacy/privacy/ad-cookie/default.asp

Removing your e-mail, address and telephone numbers from lists.
http://www.dmaconsumers.org/consumerassistance.html#mail

Anti-Spam Tools
http://www.webattack.com/freeware/comm/fwspam.shtml

BONUS: Opt-out of credit card marketing mail
The three big credit-reporting companies provide your information to "resellers" or "vendors". To curtail this abuse, call toll free 888-567-8688. Listen to all the options before hitting a key. #3 is the best option to remove you "forever" (well till you change your phone number). Remember to get your cell phone number removed, too. Once you call them they will mail you a confirmation letter for you to mail back to them.

? 2004 Maria Marsala, Business Growth Strategist. Bringing women-owned service businesses our Wall Street expertise. Your bottom line is NO accident. If your income has been hovering or flat lining the past year or so, if you are working more than 35 hours per week and have no passive income stream, we need to talk. http://www.coachmaria.com You have nothing to loose and everything to gain!

---

Emulation Manual - A Complete Guide on How to Change Your Windows XP to Mac OS X

IntroductionMac OS X is the most technologically advanced operating system by Apple. The use of soft edges, translucent colors and pinstripes (similar to the hardware of the first iMacs) brought more color and... Read More

404 Error Pages: What Are They And How Do You Create One?

We've all seen them, you've been browsing a website and you click a link and nothing loads apart from the words '404 Error' along with the usual stuff.So what is a 404 Error... Read More

Help, I Need a New HDTV! (Part 4 of 5)

Feeling overwhelmed in selecting a new TV? With all the choices these days, you may feel like, "Where do I start?!"In part 4 of our 5 part article, we the discuss "do I... Read More

EDTV: What You Should Know Before You Make That Purchase

Enhanced Definition Television ? also known as EDTV ? is one of the many modern viewing technologies of our time. Often confused with HDTV capability, this is actually a compromise between standard TV... Read More

Basic Computer Maintenance

One of the most common questions computer users ask is, "How do I maintain my computer and keep it running great?" A computer is a lot like a car?it costs more than you... Read More

Protect Your PC from Viruses, Worms & Trojans

Each of the items in the checklist below is part of a broad and easy to implement security policy. Install all windows critical updates for your operating system from the Microsoft Update site... Read More

Bluetooth Technology: Tips for Buying Headsets or Headphones

The technological horizon has always got something new to offer, and among the most recent of these offerings is Bluetooth enhanced hardware. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this latest-and-greatest technology,... Read More

Learn the Lost Art of Touch Typing

Computers have replaced typewriters, but two-finger, hunt-and-peck typing can never replace the touch typing of a trained professional.A recent report by Robert Johnson in the Boston Globe highlights the decline of typing skills.... Read More

Be Prepared in the Event Computer Disaster Strikes

ComputersBusinesses and individuals alike have all grown to rely on computers. The reliance is never more apparent than when something happens to the horrid little box that makes our lives easier. We expect... Read More

Enhanced Web Browsing With Toolbars

As the Web grows more crowded and just plain "noisy" with information bombarding us from every angle, most people welcome any tool, trick or shortcut to help them wade through the mountains of... Read More

PC Tools Youd Never Think You Need

Do you use Windows standard uninstall feature? How do you migrate data from your old PC to the new one? Get some tips on amazing software you never knew existed and find out... Read More

Nephrology and Dialysis For a PDA

Saving Lives With A Pocket PCFree medical downloads can be a real lifesaver for many people. For those dealing with diseases, using their pda to help monitor their health is one of the... Read More

Help, I Need a New HDTV! (Part 5 of 5)

Feeling overwhelmed in selecting a new TV? With all the choices these days, you may feel like, "Where do I start?!"In the final part of our 5 part article, we the discuss tv... Read More

4 Computer Money-saving Tips

Tip #1 -- Rebates: A rebate is not always a bargain. Computers with rebates are often close to being discontinued. You may pick up a good deal or purchase technology that's about to... Read More

USB Drives - What to Look For in a USB Device

Those small USB drives have so many names, pocket drives, thumb drives, USB Pen, Jump drives, and several other names, but when it comes down to it, we are all talking about a... Read More

Cisco Certification: Taking Your First Certification Exam

You???ve studied hard; you???ve practiced your configurations; you???ve used your flash cards over and over again; and finally, the big day is here. Your first certification exam!For many Cisco certification candidates, their first... Read More

Bios Term

BIOS - Basic Input Output SystemThe central processing unit of a computer needs to communicate with the many hardware devices installed in your computer.The BIOS of a computer contains a piece of software... Read More

Why There Are Color Differences in Printing from Your PC

This article describes the basic properties of color, what the relationships are between them and the differences between what you see and what you actually get using your inkjet cartridges.PropertiesMost of you will... Read More

How to Switch to Firefox and Why You should

First things first, what is Firefox? Well, it's a browser. Ok but what's that? A browser is a computer program used to view web pages, to browse through the world wide web. In... Read More

How to Use SQLXML to Retrieve Data from SQL Server Database?

Using SQL Server 2000 and above versions you can retrieve data from SQL Server in XML format directly from the database. Many XML related features were incorporated in the SQL Server database. This... Read More

iPod users get the picture

iPod users start to get the picture and it's turning out to be colorful fun!!The latest generation of hi tech gadget users are watching the different media they use start to converge as... Read More

Maintain Your Computer ? Keep Your Business Running

Maintaining your computer is extremely important ? especially if you are an Internet Marketer. As you know, without your computer, your business can come to a screeching halt. There are 4 important steps... Read More

MobiTV and Visual Stimulation Imput for Personal Cognitive Performance

Stimulus thru Caffiene or Visual Input?It appears that the Mobi TV feature for Cell Phones may in fact have some positive Bio-advantages in that it exercises the brain thru visual stimulation. We know... Read More

Spyware Remover

Your first step in removing dangerous infections from your computer should be downloading a free program called Hijack This. Make sure you download the file and extract it to a directory on your... Read More

Cisco Certification: The Most Important Cisco Study Youll Ever Do

All of us are familiar with the pyramids of Egypt. These magnificent structures have stood for thousands of years, withstanding extreme heat and other factors that would bring down an ordinary structure.When we... Read More

Back Up, Back Up, Back Up!

This is not your typical lost data story. I was a good girl and I kept my files on the network drive just like the company recommended. The only thing I put on... Read More

A Beginners Guide to Avoiding Viruses

"Aaaaaahhhhhh! I've been invaded by a virus!" Getting a virus means getting sick and no one in their right mind wants to be ill. Well, now that computers have become our close friends,... Read More

The Advantages of Portable MP3 Players

With their solid-state technology, compact size, and abundant memory, portable mp3 players are the state of the art in portable music systems.Most portable mp3 players feature storage systems that have no moving parts.... Read More

Basic Computer Thermodynamics

That desk in front of you and everything else around you is made up of atoms. An atom consists of electrons orbiting around a nucleus. An atom is increadibly tiny. You could line... Read More