Most computer users, irrespective if they are home, office or corporate users, are aware of the dark side of the Internet.  Our online world brings issues of credit card and identity theft, junk mail and seedy content right into our homes and offices. But how many computer users are unwitting accomplices to such activities?

Your computer, or those of the people in your organisation, is possibly being used to send spam, harvest e-mail addresses for spam, and make purchases using stolen credit cards or take part in a denial of service (DoS) attack, where an army of computers shuts down a Web Site by flooding its servers with HTTP requests.

How does this happen without your knowledge? Examples like those above are usually the work of a trojan, a small program that can be unknowingly installed on a computer and then accessed by another computer over the Internet. Together with programs called Spyware, bagware, adware and viruses; trojans are a part of a group collectively known as "malware" or "pestware." While the majority of such programs are pests and nothing more, they have the potential to be quite nasty.  This is not the only problem. All the ‘baddies’ have the crippling habit of slowing down you computer, sometimes to a crawl.

 

Trojans.

Like the horse of old, a trojan carries with it an unexpected surprise. Trojans do not replicate like a virus, but they do leave behind a program that can be contacted by another computer. From there, they can do just about anything. While it is possible for a trojan to be used to take control of a computer, the most common trojans are dialer programs. Dialers are used without your knowledge to make international or premium calls (900-type numbers) from your PC. That's more than an annoyance; it can get expensive.

Trojans are also known as RATS (remote access trojans) and they are most often hidden in games and other small software programs that unsuspecting users download, then unknowingly execute on their PCs.

 

Spyware: Who's Watching Your Online Moves?

Spyware programs range from annoying to the dangerous, including keyboard loggers and screen capture applications that can steal passwords and other sensitive information. The programs are sometimes bundled in with shareware or freeware programs that can be downloaded from the Internet. Often these programmes claim to be helpful utilities that also carry a more sinister side.

Many of the programs are marketed as legitimate tools for keeping tabs on children and spouses online. One program called Activity Logger, for example, connects to the Internet on its own, records the URLs of sites visited and the keystrokes from e-mail and chat applications. It will also capture screenshots that can be made into a slide show.

 

Adware and the like.

Adware is software that displays advertisements to computer users. Some of the strictest definitions of adware include applications that are sponsored for their free use.   It would be foolish of us to mention the companies that perpetrate this form of bad practice.  In the USA companies like this take security software companies to Court and sue for millions of dollars! And what’s more, they invariably win.  This is why Anti Virus, Anti Spam and Anti Spyware programmes let so much bad stuff through to your computer – the software manufacturers are concerned that they will end up with a costly legal battle, again and as a consequence dare not take on the ‘big boys’ of bad practice.

As for adware that reports personally identifiable information, once again tolerance varies. Some people don't want any information, such as tracking the sites you visit, revealed. Others draw the line at logging IP addresses.

Element 1. Do something about it; invest in a known Anti Spyware, Adware & Trojan Programme.


Viruses.

For all the publicity viruses have gotten, they remain a serious threat. While viruses can potentially destroy a computer's data, most of the widespread viruses have leaned more toward annoyance. The most famous, are e-mail viruses that replicate and spread using e-mail addresses stored on a computer. They still cost computer users and their employers hundreds of millions annually.

Depending on the type of pest that plagues your computer, it may be very easy to detect an infection. That's the good news. The bad news is some of the most dangerous infections, especially from RATS or spyware, can be very difficult to detect. That's why most of the checking and removing of pests is done with software designed to do just that.  Nevertheless, there are some general symptoms you should know.

Element 2. Do something about it; invest in a known Anti Virus and or Firewall programme.

 

Your Computer Has a Mind of Its Own.

Spyware, trojans and other pests contact other computers, and each pest is a program in its own right, therefore they use system resources such as CPU cycles, memory and an Internet connection.

 

Slow Computer.

There are several reasons your computer may be running slow, but if you use it on a regular basis, then you're familiar with its noises, bumps, hang-ups and how it reacts. Older computers tend to run slower. Some applications cause computers to run slower. Computers are machines, they do not have moods. A sudden change in how your computer is running could be a sign of spyware or adware infection.

 

Windows Registry Problems.

After a while the Windows Registry clogs up with redundant, incorrect and corrupt entries and becomes fragmented.  Over time this will slow your computer down to a crawl.

Element 3. Do something about it; invest in a Registry Utility programme.

 

E-Mail Symptoms.

If you're getting a lot of bounced back mail and see evidence of emails being sent without your knowledge, then it's possible that trojan spamware has found its way onto your computer. Spamware is a trojan that can turn your computer into a spam launching pad and create headaches for unknowing computer users, especially if a virus is also sent. Even if your computer is not being used to send spam, trojans can steal a copy of your e-mail address book and send it back to a spammer.

Element 4. Do something about it; invest in a Anti Spam programme.
 

Noises, Bells and Whistles.

Victims of some trojans report CD drives opening and shutting, or programs opening and closing. Is your hard drive whirling away when you're not doing anything? Is there an unknown icon in your Windows system tray (lower right corner of your screen)? If you have an external modem, there may be lights indicating data tranfers blinking when you're not doing anything online. These are all signs a program may be up to no good in the background.

 

Offline Symptoms.

Keyboard loggers can capture passwords and user names, so if the bank or credit card accounts you access online appear to have been tampered with, your computer may be the place to start looking for clues. If you have any reason to believe someone is interested in tracking what you do online, scan for spyware regularly.

 

Pop-ups.

Unless you use a pop-up blocker, you are familiar with pop-up and pop-under advertisements, and very likely which sites legitimately serve them. Pop ads are important because not only can they be a symptom of infestation, but clicking on a rogue pop-up can lead to an infection or take you to a site where danger lurks.

Most legitimate pop-ups open over your browser when you visit a Web site. If the Web site is legitimate then the advertiser is usually legitimate and well-known as well. If the advertisement doesn't seem to match the content, ask yourself some questions.

 

When You See a Pop-Up Advertisement.

Are you online? Do you have a browser open (a broadband connection) or have you dialled in to your ISP (a dial-up connection)? Ads that pop-up on your desktop or over offline applications such as a word processor are a possible sign of an adware infestation.

 
Did you just visit a Web site or open a new Web page? Most legitimate pop-up ads launch when you open a new page.

What site are you visiting? Who is the advertiser? If you're swimming in the dangerous waters of the Web, such as hacker sites and pornography, the pop-ups are more likely to be shady and deceptive and could lead to a site where spyware or adware lurks.

Do the ads you see seem to be targeting you based on terms you have searched for recently or sites you have been visiting? Sometimes this is good marketing when done within a Web site, but if you keep seeing ads that seem close to your most recent online search, it may be the result of adware or spyware.

If the ad seems suspicious to you, or if it was delivered while you were offline, not surfing the Web or advertises pornography, work at home or get rich quick-type messages, then stay away. If you are getting pop-up advertisements and they remain a mystery after you answer these questions, some type of spyware or adware may be to blame.

Element 5. Use the Pop-Up Blocker in your browser or invest in a blocker programme.

 

Clear Cache for all major web browsers.

In order to speed up web browsing, web browsers are designed to download text and images in web pages, store them locally on your machine in an area called "cache". When you visit the same page for a second time, the browser speeds up the display time by loading the page locally from cache, instead of downloading everything all over again. This sometimes results in less than current versions of web pages being displayed. If you believe that you have a less than current version of a page, please follow the following steps to clear the cache in your browser. N.B. the directions vary depending on whether you use the AOL, Internet Explorer, or Netscape browser.

Element 6. Clear the Browser Cache on a regular basis.

To clear your cache in Internet Explorer:

   1. Close all other open browser windows.
   2. Click the 'Tools' menu at the top of your browser, and select 'Internet Options.'
   3. Click the 'General' tab at the top of the dialogue box.
   4. Click 'Delete Files' under 'Temporary Internet files.'
   5. Select 'Delete all offline content' by checking the box.
   6. Click 'OK.'

To clear your cache in Mozilla Firefox:

   1. Close all other open browser windows.
   2. Click the 'Tools' menu at the top of your browser, and select 'Options.'
   3. Click 'Privacy.'
   4. Click 'Clear' next to 'Cache.'
   5. Click 'OK.'

To clear your cache in Mozilla and Netscape:

   1. Close all other open browser windows.
   2. Click the 'Edit' menu at the top of your browser, and select 'Preferences.'
   3. Click the '+' next to 'Advanced.'
   4. Select 'Cache' under 'Advanced.'
   5. Click 'Clear Cache.'
   6. Click 'OK.'

To clear your cache in Safari:

   1. Close all other open browser windows.
   2. Open the 'Safari' menu on your browser's toolbar.
   3. Select 'Empty Cache.'
   4. Click 'Empty' in the dialogue box.

To clear your cache in Opera:

   1. Close all other open browser windows.
   2. Click the Tools menu at the top of your browser, and then select Preferences.
   3. Click the Advanced tab.
   4. Click History.
   5. Click Empty now.
   6. Click OK.

To clear your cache in AOL:

   1. On the Settings menu on the AOL toolbar, click Preferences.
   2. In the Organization section of the Preferences window, click Internet properties (WWW).
   3. In the Temporary Internet Files section, click Delete Files.
   4. Click OK.

In some cases, it may be necessary to clear your cache more than once.