Information

Although there is no official breakdown, and the terms adware, spyware and
malware are often used interchangeably, the following definitions should give you
a better understanding of the three:

Adware (or advertising supported software) is any application that displays advertisements
while the software is running. These ads are commonly displayed as pop-ups or through a bar
that appears anywhere on the screen, most often as a portion of the web browser.

Spyware consists of computer software that gathers and reports information about a
computer and/or user without the user’s knowledge or consent. Aside from drastically impairing
system performance, these programs often have the ability to record credit card numbers and
user’s online banking transactions. Spyware programs often contain design features which
make them difficult if not nearly impossible to remove from the infected system.

Malware (or malicious software) is any application developed for the purpose of doing harm
to a computer system. Malware programs can hijack your browser, redirect your search
attempts, and set up your modem connection to dial a 1-900 number.

I rarely surf the net, how did I get it?
You can get infected by these malicious softwares in several ways. These variants often
come bundled with other programs and usually show pop-up ads, sending revenue from the
ads to the program's authors. Others are installed from websites, pretending to be software
needed to view the website. Still others install themselves through holes in Internet Explorer
like a virus would, requiring you to do nothing but visit the wrong web page to get infected.
The vast majority, however, must be installed by the user.
Unfortunately, getting infected with malware is usually much easier than getting rid of it
(improper removal of some variants will render your internet connection useless), and once
you get malware on your computer it tends to multiply.

OK, I’m infected. Now what do I do?

Call PC Tech Onsite Solutions. A certified expert will come to your door, remove the
most persistent malicious software variants and give you some tips on keeping your system
running smoothly in the future.