Guest Author - Debbie Jacobsen

Does your computer run a lot slower than it used to? If so, there’s a good chance you may have hidden spyware applications running on your system.

It is said that around 80% of internet users are not adequately protected against dangerous spyware. Spyware has become just as common as computer viruses, and is much more dangerous. Spyware is the “tool of choice” for identity thieves, which reaching epidemic levels on the internet.

Spyware installs on your computer quickly and secretly. Because spyware is not a virus, most antivirus software will not identify and kill spyware. Spyware is designed to monitor your online activities and steal personal information such as account numbers, passwords and logon credentials.

Your computer can pick up spyware infections in many ways. You may click on a “tainted” link in an email that will install spyware immediately. Simply visiting certain websites can result in spyware infection. Downloads are a common source of spyware, particularly those involving “free” software, images, fonts, and games.

Spyware shows no symptoms until you are so badly infected with a multitude of malicious software that your computer nearly slows to a crawl. This happens because your computer has literally been turned into a “robot” (also known as a “bot”). The spyware is using most of your computers processing power to communicate with other computers on the internet that are controlling it. This “communication” might mean your computer is being used to host illicit web pages, send spam, or transmit your personal information to an identity thief.

The only way to make sure your computer is “clean” and free from dangerous spyware is to use a good spyware remover program. Spyware remover software will scan your system for known spyware and “kill” it. It will also protect you from new infections because it monitors your system in “real time”, blocking any attempts for new spyware to install. Anti spyware software uses a database of “spyware definitions”, which must be updated regularly in order to have the most current protection.

There are many anti-spyware programs on the market, and all do a pretty good job. One of the best is Spyware Doctor by PC Tools Software. I used Spyware Doctor for a few years (before switching to an internet security suite) and found it to be super easy to use.

Spyware Doctor

Spyware Doctor is super easy to install and use. It runs in the background, protecting you while you work or surf the net, and doesn’t drag your computer performance down as much as most anti-spyware programs. (Note: All anti-spyware programs will have some impact on system performance. This is because of all the intense scanning and monitoring that goes on “behind the scenes”).

Spyware Doctor is easy to install and use, even for those who are not comfortable with computers. Once installed, it will perform a full system scan, where it finds and removes any spyware on your PC. Periodically it will prompt you to perform deep system scans, where it will look for and kill any spyware that might have slipped through the cracks.

PC Magazine awarded Spyware Doctor “Best of the Year” for 2005 and 2006, and Computer Shopper rated it one of the “top 100” products for 2006. If you are not using a computer security suite, you really should add an anti-spyware product to your PC security arsenal. Spyware Doctor is a great choice!

Spyware Doctor is available directly from PC Tools Software. They also have many other computer security products available.