Virus & Spyware

Avoiding Spyware, Trojans and Viruses:

1.  Avoid "Free" software.
2.  Be wary of Email attachments.
3.  Do not install File-Sharing software

How can I prevent infection?
Normally people infect their PCs by engaging in activity that puts their PC at risk.  Free software downloads can often contain hidden code that takes control or tracks your surfing activity.  Shady websites can contain code that infects your computer and hijacks your web browser.  Lastly, file-sharing on P2P networks can give hackers and spyware free reign on your computer.  Avoid the above and you take away some of the common tools for infection.

What are some signs of Spyware infection?
A PC infected with spyware will quickly bog down.  If you notice a performance hit, then it's possible you're infected.  Another sign of spyware infection are pop-up ads.  If you notice pop up ads while browsing, or if they randomly appear on your desktop, then you have a problem.  Another sure sign of infection is browser hijacking.  This means your web browser's home page is continuously reset to another site.

What is a rootkit virus?
A rootkit is a piece of software that is knowingly or unknowingly installed on a system and has the ability to make itself completely invisible.  It will normally give the hacker complete control of that system.

Virus Information:

But what is a computer virus anyways? Obviously, we all know they are bad things to have on your computer, but what makes a virus a virus and not something else? Well, the most fundamental characteristic (besides it doing evil things to your computer) of a virus is that it is user propogated, meaning that a user has to activate it. Just like with biological viruses, if a virus can't find a host that reacts to it, it's doomed... and we like that!

So, the next question would be what kinds of repercussions can a virus have on your computer? Well, this is very difficult to answer. In truth, it all depends on how smart the virus programmer is. We've seen damage potential range from being really mischievous by randomly assigning letters to your keyboard (for example, if you typed a "k" on your keyboard, your screen would have typed an "r", or a "d", or whatever it felt like displaying on your screen... you just won't get that "k" you wanted) to absolutely catastrophic by deleting all of the contents off of your hard drive! Anything is fair game.

Viruses - Taking Action...

Viruses sound scary, we know. But there is some light at the end of the tunnel. Companies and people that develop anti-virus programs are very smart, and they have developed extremely sophisticated technologies that will allow you to fight back. Not only are databases continuously updated 24/7 to protect your computer from the most recent viruses, but the majority of anti-virus programs actually have a form of artificial intelligence. Through a process called "hueristics", anti-virus programs can actually protect your computer just by analyzing how a virus behaves on your computer, even if the virus isn't in a database of any sort! Pretty nifty stuff!

Here's some more good news: protecting yourself from viruses, trojans, worms, rootkits and even some spyware and adware all require the same steps! Talk about getting two birds with one stone!

• Keep your computer up-to-date with the latest patches: We know this sounds obvious but, we are still amazed at the number of machines we deal with that don't have the most recent patches on them. These patches seal up security holes that viruses take advantage of, so it's in your best interest to stay as recent as possible with patches. Not sure if you have the most up-to-date patches? Have a look at Microsoft's website and click on the Microsoft Update link on the left-hand menu. You also have the option of having critical patches automatically update your machine when available. To set this option, do the following:
  
  • Click Start, then My Computer
  • Under the Other Places menu to the left, click Control Panel
  • If you are in Category View, click Security Center and click on the Automatic Updates section at the bottom of the new window that opened. In the new window that opened, make sure the Automatic (recommended) is selected.

  If you are in Classic View, click System. When the new window opens, click the Automatic Updates tab and make sure the Automatic (recommended) is selected.

• Have anti-virus software installed and up-to-date: Honestly, anti-virus software is pretty much useless if you don't keep its virus definitions up-to-date. Have a look at the Checklist section for more information about anti-virus software.
• Be smart in the websites you choose to visit: There are a lot of bad websites out there that actually have viruses programmed right into the website. Through a process called malicious scripting, viruses can be installed onto your computer just by visiting a website. Websites that have been known to use mailicious scripting are those dedicated to various forms of warez (illegal downloads) and pornography.
• Use extreme caution when opening emails from unknown users: Viruses have been know to have a reputation of trying to spread through email. Always use anti-virus tools to scan emails for worms. Even if the email looks like it came from someone you know, it never hurts to scan it for viruses.

Spyware Information: Believe it or not, the main purpose of spyware is for marketing research purposes. While it may be considered unethical, companies use the information collected by spyware to figure out things such as what other websites you browse, what programs you run on your computer, and other habits you may have. The reason they collect this information is so they can figure out how to make your experience on their website more pleasant. All industries want to learn about their customers in hopes to gain a competitive advantage over their competitors. But where will the line be drawn on the types of information they can collect from you?

For the most part, spyware installs and runs in the background of your system without your knowledge or permission. Recall in the last sentence that we said "for the most part". There are also a number of instances where you may have given spyware permission to install itself on your computer without your knowledge. How is this possible? Well, let us answer that question by asking you a few questions: Have you ever downloaded freeware (software that is free to download) and installed it on your computer? Do you read through all of the licensing and use agreements before clicking that "I Agree" button for accessing certain parts of websites or prior to downloading software? Have you ever downloaded and installed anti-spyware tools? If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, then there is the possibility that you gave spyware permission to install itself on your computer without your knowledge. Now, you're probably thinking to yourself "What's the deal with that third bullet? Don't anti-spyware tools remove spyware from your computer?!" Well, with having the title "Anti-spyware", you would think that they should be able to remove spyware. The only problem is that there are a large number of so-called "anti-spyware" programs that do little to remove spyware on your computer, and can even make your spyware problem worse. The so-called "Anti-spyware" tools that don't live up to their expectations are usually free (but not always). Unfortunately, just like with pretty much everything, spyware has evolved over time. While there are still large amounts of spyware on the Internet that just collect basic details such as your browsing habits, there are other forms that collect more sensitive information about you. These sophisticated enhancements now allow spyware to collect and transfer personal information about you such as Instant Message and chat conversations, user names and passwords, and even your credit card information. Spyware - Taking Action... So, what can you do to help prevent, detect, and remove spyware? Along with that, how do you know what programs are legitimate without making situations worse? For starters, you can do the following: Do the research: If there is a program you want to download, don't download it until you scope out the company. Does the website look legitimate? Is there customer support you can contact for the program(s)? Can the company that is providing the program be trusted? Look at the company's website and read about them so you can have an understanding on not only what their program will do for you, but also if the company is legitimate or not. Keep your browser up-to-date: Security patches are constantly released so that your web browser can be protected from the spyware that takes advantage of known weaknesses. Read the licensing and use agreements: If you have to click an "I Agree" button before downloading something, there is a reason for that. Through reading the agreements, you can discover the ways that information will be collected from you. Disable ActiveX unless you need it: This is more of an advanced thing to do. While ActiveX is used by a lot of sites for functionality purposes, it is also used to automatically install spyware onto your system. Since disabling ActiveX is different for each type of browser, just go to Google and do a search for how to disable ActiveX with your browser.

For the most part, spyware installs and runs in the background of your system without your knowledge or permission. Recall in the last sentence that we said "for the most part". There are also a number of instances where you may have given spyware permission to install itself on your computer without your knowledge. How is this possible? Well, let us answer that question by asking you a few questions: Have you ever downloaded freeware (software that is free to download) and installed it on your computer? Do you read through all of the licensing and use agreements before clicking that "I Agree" button for accessing certain parts of websites or prior to downloading software? Have you ever downloaded and installed anti-spyware tools? If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, then there is the possibility that you gave spyware permission to install itself on your computer without your knowledge. Now, you're probably thinking to yourself "What's the deal with that third bullet? Don't anti-spyware tools remove spyware from your computer?!" Well, with having the title "Anti-spyware", you would think that they should be able to remove spyware. The only problem is that there are a large number of so-called "anti-spyware" programs that do little to remove spyware on your computer, and can even make your spyware problem worse. The so-called "Anti-spyware" tools that don't live up to their expectations are usually free (but not always). Unfortunately, just like with pretty much everything, spyware has evolved over time. While there are still large amounts of spyware on the Internet that just collect basic details such as your browsing habits, there are other forms that collect more sensitive information about you. These sophisticated enhancements now allow spyware to collect and transfer personal information about you such as Instant Message and chat conversations, user names and passwords, and even your credit card information. Spyware - Taking Action... So, what can you do to help prevent, detect, and remove spyware? Along with that, how do you know what programs are legitimate without making situations worse? For starters, you can do the following: Do the research: If there is a program you want to download, don't download it until you scope out the company. Does the website look legitimate? Is there customer support you can contact for the program(s)? Can the company that is providing the program be trusted? Look at the company's website and read about them so you can have an understanding on not only what their program will do for you, but also if the company is legitimate or not. Keep your browser up-to-date: Security patches are constantly released so that your web browser can be protected from the spyware that takes advantage of known weaknesses. Read the licensing and use agreements: If you have to click an "I Agree" button before downloading something, there is a reason for that. Through reading the agreements, you can discover the ways that information will be collected from you. Disable ActiveX unless you need it: This is more of an advanced thing to do. While ActiveX is used by a lot of sites for functionality purposes, it is also used to automatically install spyware onto your system. Since disabling ActiveX is different for each type of browser, just go to Google and do a search for how to disable ActiveX with your browser.