AntiSpyware Center

Spyware is a computer program which can be installed on personal computers (usually without the permission from the owner) and has the purpose of collecting information and sending it back to another source - usually an Internet marketing or pornographic website.

Spyware differs from viruses and worms in that it does not usually self-replicate. Like many recent viruses, however, spyware - by design - exploits infected computers for commercial gain. Typical tactics furthering this goal include delivery of unsolicited pop-up advertisements; theft of personal information (including financial information such as credit card numbers); monitoring of Web-browsing activity for marketing purposes; or routing of HTTP requests to advertising sites.

A comprehensive list of Spyware definitions, including the enormous Anti-Spyware, Adware, and Malware search engines.

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A rootkit is a set of software tools frequently used by a third party (usually an intruder) after gaining access to a computer system. These tools are intended to conceal running processes, files or system data, which helps an intruder maintain access to a system without the user's knowledge.

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Keystroke logging (often called keylogging) is a diagnostic used in software development that captures the user's keystrokes. It is often used in computer viruses and trojan horse programs to monitor a compromised system in order to obtain secure passwords to personal information.

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