Online Security – How’d that get there? I never installed it!
Invasion of online privacy extends beyond the realm of account hijacking, hacking, and identity theft. Anytime something is installed on your computer without your awareness, this can be considered an invasion of your privacy. Even legitimate applications, which do no harm, can be considered an invasion of your privacy if placed on your computer without your knowledge. This is like a neighbour who comes into your room and takes a picture during the night. In midst of your slumber, you had no idea what was going on and your privacy was severely compromised. Fortunately for us, there are ways to maintain your “off-line” privacy, such as fences, curtains, paper shredders, and more. Likewise, there are ways to protect your online privacy from spyware, malware, and viruses, which constantly are trying to place themselves secretly on your computer. Strap yourselves in and get ready, a segment on online security is just around the bend.
Since Force Flow has already covered the ins and outs of spyware in that magnificent guide, I’m just going to cover the basics. I’ll also include a section of recommended programs and habits to help prevent spyware from infecting your computer and invading your online privacy.
Cookies
Cookies are files that are placed on your hard disk drive when you visit a webpage. The next time you visit a webpage, it will attempt to “recall” or retrieve the cookies it placed on your computer to identify the site user; they’re what enable PC Mechanic to “remember” your account name and password the next time you visit the site so you don’t have to login again. Generally, cookies are used for legitimate and understandable purposes, such as the previously mentioned process which prevents users from having to login each time they visit a website. Despite the fact that most cookies are quite harmless, it is debatable whether cookies are an invasion of our online privacy or not. On one side, we have online privacy junkies who claim that cookies are placed on computers without our awareness. On the other side, many agree that cookies are, for the most part, harmless and used to further enhance our online experience. No matter which side you’re on, you should be well aware that not all cookies are legitimate. Some “rogue” cookies are actually placed on your computer to gather information. Below, in the Screen Cast tutorial section, you’ll learn more about dealing with cookies.
Adware
Put on your computer to generate and present advertisements (often in the form of pop-ups) adware will, for the most part, do little un-correctable damage to your PC. Keep in mind, however, that this is not always the case. Generally written and distributed by advertising agencies, the main goal of adware is marketing and boosting one’s revenue through advertisements. While their intentions are sometimes understandable, such as using revenues from adware to pay for the bandwidth a site requires, it is a direct invasion of our privacy to install adware without our consent.
Malware
Derived from a combination of two terms, malicious and software, malware is just that; malicious software. Malware is created to deliberately wreak havoc and do as much damage to your computer as possible. Often appearing in self replicating forms, malware will soak up a fair amount of system resources, causing your computer to run at a snail’s pace. Combine that with being horrifically difficult to remove, malware is anything but friendly and benign.
Viruses
Viruses are programs that insert themselves over and over into other files and thus spread throughout one’s computer by replicating. Viruses are a form of malware and while many viruses are designed to cause damage, the majority are simply nuisances that cause unusual computer behaviour upon the execution of an infected file or program. Thanks to the advent of antivirus software and online virus removal instructions, it’s becoming easier and easier to remove viruses without the help of a professional. There are a variety of viruses, many of which attach themselves to the emails you send from your computer. Appearing to be a secure attachment from a friend or co-worker, unsuspecting users have no idea that a virus is also contained within the attachment. Whether accidentally contracted through an email attachment or contained in a file downloaded from the internet, viruses violate our privacy by executing without our awareness.
Trojan Horses
Trojan horses, or Trojans for short, specialize in disguising themselves as legitimate and “fun” applications. By looking cool or exciting, Trojans trick people into downloading what they think will be an interesting program. There are two main classifications of Trojans; actual software that contains hidden strands of malicious code and full throttle malicious software that is simply presented as something legitimate. Uniquely, Trojans cannot auto-execute and will remain dormant until the infected piece of software is executed. Trojans have long been feared for their ability to open backdoors. Like mentioned earlier in the article, hackers often utilize back doors to gain remote control over a system. Back doors are also used to turn computers into zombies, allowing them to take part in denial of service (DoS) attacks. Free screen saver downloads and the like are literally super highways for Trojans. In the excitement of installing a “cool” new screensaver, a Trojan may silently begin to erase important system files or change your home page.
Spyware
Spyware is the James Bond of online privacy invasion; it spies on you without you knowing and causes a little havoc on the side. While perpetually absorbing system resources, spyware will gather information from your computer and send what it collects “home”. As one continues to browse the internet without taking the proper security measures, it’s quite easy for spyware to stockpile itself on your computer and cause ridiculous drops in system performance. Marketing agencies frequently utilize spyware to gather information on the browsing tendencies of computer users, only to turn around and use that information to help sell their product. Spyware is obviously designed to invade our online privacy by installing itself on our computers, collecting information, and sending that information to a remote location, all without asking for our consent.
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