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Contributed by Alex Robb
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When you plug your computer into a school’s network, you’re hooking
it up to hundreds of other machines that are downloading music and
movies, playing multiplayer online games, and transferring files between
other computers. With all the data flying around, there’s a pretty good
chance one malicious file will slip through the network. In fact,
we’ve seen a popular phenomenon on guy’s floors, which involve people
visiting sexual web sites and downloading spyware on their buddy’s
computer.
If you’re computer has been infected with spyware, you’re going to see
plenty of pop ups. You’ll also see new applications installed on
your computer that you don’t remember installing. Worst of all, your
computer will become ridiculously slow. If it takes more than ten
minutes to do anything on your computer, you probably have some spyware.
Relax though; spyware won’t kill your computer. We’ve seen too
many college students buy new computers because of spyware, but that’s
not necessary.
Eliminating Spyware
Unless you just received your master’s degree in computer science,
don’t bother deleting spyware. The programs will just appear when
you restart your computer. It would be like cutting weeds in your
grass; weeds grow back, spyware comes back. The best solution is
to download a spyware scanner. There are a couple hundred
programs available, but here are the most recognized programs in the
industry. Pick one, anyone , and download a free copy.
Once you download and install a program, you’ll want to make sure it is
up to date. The first time you run the program, it will check for
updates. Make sure you check for updates every time you scan for
spyware.
After that process, things are pretty straight forward. It will
scan for problems and tell you what it is about to delete. Once
the program scans and repairs your computer, restart your machine.
Preventing Spyware
The easiest way to prevent spyware from running on your keyboard is to install the Yahoo! Toolbar.
This toolbar uses a program called “Pest Patrol” to scan and monitor
potential threats. The toolbar also has a feature to block pop up
ads.
For a more aggressive defense, we strongly recommend downloading a free copy of ZoneAlarm.
This program sets up a powerful firewall on your computer to keep
malicious programs and viruses off your machine. It runs in the
background, which means you won’t have to worry about scanning your
machine.
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