How to keep your system clean from Spywares, Adwares and Malwares
Wikipedia definitions: [source: www.wikipedia.org]
Spyware:
"Spyware is a type of program that watches what users do with their computer and then sends that information over the Internet. Spyware can collect many different types of information about a user. More benign programs can attempt to track what types of websites a user visits and send this information to an advertisement agency. More malicious versions can try to record what a user types to try to intercept passwords or credit card numbers. Yet other versions simply launch popup advertisements."
Malware:
"Malware is software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system without the owner's informed consent. It is a blend of the words "malicious" and "software". The expression is a general term used by computer professionals to mean a variety of forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software or program code."
Adware:
"Adware or advertising-supported software is any software package which automatically plays, displays, or downloads advertising material to a computer after the software is installed on it or while the application is being used."
For Normal Net users, all the above three *wares pose serious threats. All these are called 'badwares' in general.
There are Millions of users getting affected everyday. Countering the badwares is extremely important. I have used many Antibadware products and evaluated each one for the past three years. Let me list out the best ones here.
[Click on the images to download the products.]
Ad-Aware:
It has a clean Interface. All Self-Explanatory. Well designed graphics makes using the product so simple. Its a top rated software. It is named as Ad-Aware, which is a bit of misleading. I can assure you guys that it cleans all types of badware. The best feature about this product is, its FREE!!! Click the image to download Ad-Aware from the official site.Spybot Search & Destroy:
One of the very efficient spyware killer. It has grown up a long way from its birth. Till date its available for FREE. It has a Real-Time protection for system changes. It protects the registry from being changed without the user permission. That means, For example, if you try to install a software on your system, Spybot will intercept you, telling you that the Windows Registry is about to be changed and if you like to allow it or not. Novice users may find it difficult to handle at first.Microsoft Windows Defender:
Note: This product requires Windows validation. The Download Now link will take you to the Microsoft site for downloading.Windows Defender is a free program that helps you stay productive by protecting your computer against pop-ups, slow performance and security threats caused by spyware and other potentially unwanted software. This beta program from Microsoft detects and removes malware from your machine. Additional tools include a privacy eraser and scan scheduler.
Spyware Doctor:
This is not a free product. Every penny paid to this product is very much worth. It takes care of the system from getting badware infected. It patrols every operation in the system and alerts you if something is strange. It catches almost (99%) all the spywares. It is a product of PCTOOLS, a very well knows brand name in IT industry. It is very easy to use.General Tips to safeguard your system from Badwares:
- Organise your browsing habits. Visit only authenticated sites.
- Never download anything from anonymous sites.
- Do not open or download attachments in emails from unknown senders.
- Always use a firewall.
- Always use a virus scanner.
- Avoid using IE and start using Firefox.
- Be careful when playing online games.
- Do not accept file transfers from unknown users in Instant messengers.
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