| Applies to:
- Microsoft Windows XP Pro, Home
- Microsoft Windows Vista Home
- Microsoft Windows Vista Business
- Microsoft Windows Vista Enterprise
- Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate
- 32-bit and-64 bit editions
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Spyware can get nasty, monitoring your every move, keeping track of where you go on the internet, what you download, your bank accounts, logins, passwords. Everybody who owns a computer and browses the internet knows what spyware is and is at least a little concerned about its effects.
HOW DO I KNOW IF MY COMPUTER IS INFECTED BY SPYWARE?
Even seasoned computer professionals sometimes fall victim to spyware. The key is to know when your computer is infected and removing it before damage has been done.
Spyware Symptoms :
- Pop up windows - especially when nothing was clicked in a browser window. If your web browser isnt even open and you're getting popups, its almost a 100% guarantee you have spyware
- Slow performance - opening new programs, windows, internet browsing
- Default Web Page - you cant set your internet browser to start on a page of your choice or you change the page and upon reopening the browser it switches back
- New Buttons, Toolbars or Icons - Do you see new buttons or toolbars on your web browser that dont belong? Are there icons on your desktop or start menu that dont belong?
- Email - You have email sent without your knowledge
- Unable Search or Browse the Internet - this is a very common symptom. Spyware often forces you to see its own result regardless of what you would like to see or search for
If you have experienced one or more of the above symptoms, you might have a computer infected with spyware!
ANTI-VIRUS AND ANTI-SPYWARE PROGRAMS
You have a few options in the Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware program world. We honestly dont like them and think they do more harm than good. Sound crazy?
Drawbacks of anti-virus and spyware programs:
- Always on, using processor power and memory
- Often block legitimate tasks that you would like to accomplish and you have to figure out how to unblock it or click a confirmation to make it work
- Frequent update downloads require you to take an action or reboot often right when you need to accomplish something else
- Purchase Price or Subscription Fees, a constant flow of money out of your pocket
- They are never 100% effective
These are only 5 points against programs that are supposed to defend your computer against attacks of virii and spyware. But if you add up all the problems that they cause you, the time you spend fixing them to make them work with what you need to accomplish, the money you spend on the programs and subscriptions Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware programs are in essence Spyware! They always rob your computer of valuable resources causing all of your programs to run slower and you to wait longer to get what you would really like to have done... DONE!
MY COMPUTER HAS SPYWARE, NOW WHAT DO I DO?
Choice 1:
Microsoft Windows - System Restore
If you know that you recently became infected with spyware, you can actually use a built in Windows function known as "System Restore". All you need to do to get started is:
start->run->type: "rstui.exe"
The first window that pops up, you can either choose to "Create a Restore Point" or "Restore my computer to an earlier time"
Create a Restore Point is a good thing to do from time to time when your computer is running smoothly or you have just installed an important program.
In this case you want to choose the other option to remove Spyware. The System Restore feature automatically creates restore points every time you install a program or restart your computer. You should have many options for restore points to choose from. If you knew that your computer was working great 3 days ago, then choose that restore point. The whole process is pretty automated and will require one reboot
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Choice 2:
Uninstall or Disable the Spyware
You can open your Control Panel and select Add/Remove Programs and scroll through the list of installed programs. Sometimes spyware will install and will allow you to simply uninstall it from this panel.
Its also a good idea to periodically uninstall programs that you no longer or never use. This will keep your drive cleaner and computer less cluttered. Many programs run TSR or Terminate Stay Resident or auto-start agents that use Processor Power and Memory whenever your computer is on. Removing of the program and its agents will free up resources and help your computer run better.
USING MSCONFIG TO DISABLE AUTO START PROGRAMS
go to Start->run->type: "msconfig" then click OK or press <enter>
Msconfig is a useful tool that is built in to Windows that will allow you disable the startup of most programs that take it upon themselves to start whether you like it or not. Choose the "startup" tab and look at the list. Not everything on this list is bad! Read through the list, the best way to find out what each item on the list does is to simply use Google and search the name of that program or file. Some will be drivers for your mouse, keyboard, or printer etc. Others will be programs that you commonly use. Most mice and keyboards will still function without a corresponding item that starts up, however some extra functionality might not be enabled without that manufacturers startup program.
Find out what every item on the list does and make a note of it. You might be back looking at the list again and once you've already researched what everything does, you will know if a new item on the list shows up and if you should be concerned! Time invested now will pay off later.
REMOVING PROGRAMS FROM THE START FOLDER
Open your start menu and browse -> Programs and find the "Startup" folder
Everything in the Startup folder automatically runs when you reboot or login as a user. Each profile on the system has its own Startup folder. Its not very common for Spyware to install to this folder, but its another place to check. You will locate most of what you need from msconfig on the previous step.
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USEFUL MICROSOFT UTILITIES
A company called Sysinternals came out with an array of tools for Windows that we found very useful, from file system, registry monitoring to system startup and service monitoring. Microsoft seems to have taken them over and added their tools into the Microsoft fold. You can find a link to the tools here: Microsoft - Sysinternals Windows Tools. Learn the tools and love them, they will be a very powerful tool in your battle against spyware.
FILEMON Tool: - This is a great tool that has many uses. If you notice a lot of hard drive activity when there should be none to very little. You can use this tool to see every program that is running and what files it is accessing. You can also exclude certain processes or locations to drill down and figure out what a specific program is doing. It is next to impossible for spyware to hide itself when you are watching file usage. Once you have identified what the name of the program is, you can either locate it on the drive and delete it or locate its service or startup location and remove it.
KEEPING YOUR NOSE CLEAN
The best medicine against spyware and viruses is you! They dont download and install by themselves, well not that often anyway.. Be careful about files that you open that are attached to emails. When you are browsing shady websites, its likely they will have shady programs they would like to install on your computer.
Top programs containing spyware: Screensavers and Mouse Cursors! Myspace is also a huge source of spyware. The old adage that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Well in the computer world this is very true! You are not going to make $5000 a day by "clicking here".
Have any young people or "children" using the computer ask permission before installing anything! Watch how they use the internet and show them the best way to find what they are looking for. This will not only help them learn how to properly use the computer as a tool but it will give them a head start on something that will become an even bigger part of their future than it is ours.
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