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| 1. |
My computer seems sluggish.
Spyware and other unwanted software is not designed to be
efficient. The resources these programs use to track your activities and
deliver advertisements can slow down your computer and errors in the
software can make your computer crash. If you notice a sudden increase
in the number of times a certain program crashes, or if your computer is
slower than normal at performing routine tasks, you may have spyware or
other unwanted software on your machine. |
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| 2. |
Home page and search
engine hijacking.
When a user's preferred home page or search engine is
changed to an unknown site an unwary victim may be exposed to an
increased risk of further malware or spyware infection. It is not
unusual for malware sites to direct hijacked computers to other Web
sites that download and install even more malware. There may also be an
increased risk of exposure to unwanted or unsavory content such as
gambling or adult links via advertisements or sponsored links. |
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| 3. |
I have tool bars that appear out of
nowhere.
Often such toolbars are search engine based. Sometimes they cannot
be turned off permanently and reappear on reboot, and sometimes they
cannot be turned off at all. Sometimes, as part of their installation,
they will disable other toolbars that may already be installed – for
example, if a reputable toolbar such as GoogleBar, AltaVista's
toolbar or Earthlink's toolbar is installed the hijacker will turn off
those toolbars to remove competition.
Search results from hijacking toolbars may
be restricted to only sites that pay for positioning, otherwise known as
"sponsored" results.
It is important to understand the
difference between sponsored results and standard search results.
Standard search results are most often created by "spidering." Spidered pages earn a high ranking over time. Community popularity plays
a big part when search engines determine the ranking of sites that
appear in standard search results. Things such as number of hits to a
site, or the number of other sites that link to the page, affect
ranking. Sponsored links, on the other hand, are there simply because
they have paid for the privilege. |
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| 4. |
My settings have changed and I can't
change them back.
Some unwanted software have
the ability to change your home page or search page settings. This means
that the page that opens first when you start your Internet browser or
the page that appears when you select "search" may be pages that you do
not recognize. Even if you know how to adjust these settings, you may
find that they revert back every time you restart your computer. |
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| 5. |
I see pop-up advertisements all the
time.
Pop-up advertisements can be very intrusive. Sometimes they
interfere with Web browsing by taking over the entire computer screen.
They can be difficult or impossible to close. In bad cases, many windows
will appear in rapid succession, making the computer virtually unusable.
Sometimes adware pop-ups are deliberately
deceptive. Examples where the "no" or "cancel" buttons are
actually "yes" or "install" buttons. Also pop-up windows
with fake Close buttons that when clicked trigger malware installations,
much to the shock of their victims.
Some unwanted software will bombard you
with pop-up ads that aren't related to a particular Web site you're
visiting. These ads are often for adult or other Web sites you may find
objectionable. If you see pop-up ads as soon as you turn on your
computer or when you're not even browsing the Web, you probably have spyware
or other unwanted software on your computer.
Pop-up windows can sometimes be explicit and family-unfriendly. They can
also advertise what is commonly known as "BetrayWare" (a term coined,
and encouraged, by MVP Jim Eshelman at his
Web page). One example
that we saw on one of our own computers (while we were testing a sponsor
program bundled with free software) was an advertisement that trumpeted a
warning that our computer was infected with spyware. We can reassure you
that it was, not infected! Sadly, far too many people are fooled by such BetrayWare advertisements. |
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Do not believe everything
you read – the computer was NOT infected |
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Note:
Don't be fooled, there aren't any benevolent (good hearted) programs
roaming the Internet looking for spyware, or at least that we know of.
If you see pop-ups, that look like one above, you can be assured they
are not a Microsoft Windows based messages if it has any offer to
download a program. That is not the way Microsoft Operates. Never trust
pop-ups that do not apply to the application (program) that you are
currently using.
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