"How Much Does Spyware
Really Affect Your Computer?"
Spyware, Adware, Viruses,
Trojans,
What does it all mean - and should your be worried?
Hi, my name is Roger
Weavers and I have been working in the computer industry for over 24
years. I have worked with just about every type of computer system out
there from large mainframes the size of a football pitch to hand held
PDA's.
So, should you be worried about your computer being damaged by spyware?
NO! - It is virtually impossible for software to damage your
computer hardware.
Should you be worried about losing all your programs and data via a
spyware attack?
If you never install programs, surf the Internet, receive emails or use
CDs, DVDs or diskettes then - No not really!
But if your computer is
exposed to software that comes from other computers and you don't want to
go through rebuilding your hard
drive and recovering all
your data you should seriously consider using Spyware Removal
Tools.
Are you experiencing any of the following symptoms? Then you probably
have Spyware or Adware on your computer.
-
Your computer
running slower than it did
-
It takes longer to
start up
-
You getting unwanted
popups and strange messages
-
Your browser home
page been changed
There are tools that you
can download for free that
will scan your hard drive and provide a report showing if you have any
Spyware or Adware on your computer.
Spyware Removal Tools will always find something! Because there are good reasons
why you sometimes have files downloaded from the Internet without you
knowing this does not mean your computer is "infected". A lot of web
sites will provide a "cookie" file so the next time you visit their web
site they will recognise you and your preferences. These files are normally not harmful so when
a scan shows hundreds of cookies on you computer -- don't panic!
How Do You Remove
Spyware?
I like to run the free
scans from a few different programs to see which one finds the most
problems. I have continually found one spyware removal tool that out performs the
others. Below is my top 5 anti-spyware tools and a list of other
programs I have tested
Xoft Spy
This program is a little more expensive than the others but it will detect not
just spyware and adware but other unwanted files such as trojan horses,
hacker tools, keyloggers and more. Xoft Spy is just as easy to use but
there are more options and settings to enable you to configure it just how
you want. For a limited time you also get
RegCure register cleaning software for FREE.
Noadware
This is a plain and simple program which lists all the problem files and
registry keys. It also gives you a severity level so you can decide if
you want to remove it or not. Levels are "dangerous", "severe" and "not
critical".
PAL Spyware Remover
An easy to use program that gives you a full or quick scan option. This
program detected some files that the other programs didn't so this would
be my first choice for functionality.
SpyWare Nuker
This program had advanced options and log files but the interface I found
to be not as easy to use. Still a good program though
Adware Remover
Easy to use interface with options to run a quick or full scan on drive,
folder and/or registry. This program did not detect some of the problems
that the other programs did.
Other free scans available.
Alert Spy
Adware Alert
Pest Bot
Download 2 or 3 of the above
spyware removal tools and see which one finds the most problems with your computer.
If you find any serious problems you can remove the spyware yourself or
buy one of the programs to do it for you.
All the Best
Roger Weavers
Sytec Computers Ltd
www.syteccomputers.com
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