Spyware and Adware - Essay Example

? Spyware and Adware Task A spyware is malicious software that gets installed on a computer without the prior knowledge of the owner. This software gets access to all the personal information about the user without his knowledge. The presence of the spyware on the computer cannot be detected by the user and is installed on the computer secretly. Spywares can be very lethal for a user as it can get access to any of your information like your personal details, account information, etc. They can enter the computer through ports or by downloading freeware software or any game from the internet (Michael 2010). For the safe working of the computer it is very necessary that the computer has some antidotes for such malicious soft wares and viruses. Because these malwares and viruses are very harmful for your computer as it can completely make your computer useless. Many anti-spyware soft wares, antivirus soft wares, firewalls are easily available on the market. But here a question arise, which software to choose for the better and complete protection of the computer? The two most commonly available soft wares are antivirus software and firewall. Firewall is software that runs on your computer and provides you with first hand protection. It controls and manages all the network traffic and clearly monitors which data is to be forwarded and which not. This action will be performed according to a set of predefined instructions. A firewall will stop all internet traffic from unauthorized sources; it will even block your internet connection first and will allow access to only a limited number of trusted sites. However, slips can occur at a port and then your computer will be at a risk if you do not have any further protection on your computer (Elizabeth 2010). On the other hand antivirus software is software that scans the computer for any viruses, hackers or malicious soft wares such as Trojans and worms and removes it from the computer. It will alert you if you are downloading any free ware software, games, songs or videos or opening a website containing a virus. It will tell you to immediately terminate your activity and will then run a check and remove the virus (Gordano 2012). A firewall can only protect you from hackers and some malicious soft wares or any other internet traffic entering from the port. However it will not be able to protect your computer if any malware manages to enter the computer or any virus enters the computer through downloaded software or game. An antivirus is very necessary for your computer so that it can scan through your hard disk and computer and detect any malware and virus. A malware or a virus can enter your computer through a USB or a CD; it can enter the computer through a downloaded software or game as well. If the virus enters this way a firewall alone cannot manage to remove the virus or malware. However, the antivirus software can alone manage to remove the viruses and malicious software no matter by what means the virus or the malware enters the computer. However, for the complete protection of your computer it is recommended that you have both firewall as well as antivirus software (www.antivirusfirewallsoftware.org 2007) Task2 For people who are new to using computer, they are generally unaware of the different soft wares and facilities that are available for the protection and increased efficiency of the computer. A new comer is also unaware of the threats to which a computer is liable and the extent to which a computer can suffer due to a virus or a malware. He can use a computer without installing any protection software and can cause the computer to hang or even the computer can get into a condition in which it becomes completely useless. Therefore it is necessary that when you are new to using a computer you get help and guidelines from an expert or at least the one who has been using a computer from a quite a lot of time about all the needs of a computer, the threats that a computer can face and the various solutions that can be used to solve these problems. To make your work easy different forums have been created on various websites in which you can place your questions and it would be answered by a person who has got information related to it. One such forum is the forum available on cexx.org; the forum is quite an active one. The questions have been answered promptly and the most delayed responses are also only with a delay of one day or a few hours. Instead of waiting for an answer you can also enter your question in the search tab and get the answer if your question has already been asked by someone else. The answer that you get is an extremely professional level one with all the required details that you need for the solution of your problem or whatever you have asked for. This website also provides you a link to download an anti- spyware software so that you can work on the spyware on your own first and if you are still unable to solve the problem you can ask questions but the software eliminates almost all of the malwares and viruses and you no need to further worry about the problems but if the problem persists you can ask a question. Other forums are also available where you can place your questions. One such website that provides a forum is http://www.computing.net. This is also a very useful website as it provides you with instant answers. Search tabs is also provided, where you can first search your question and to ease your work a quick search is also possible by entering in the category of your problem and also find details and reviews about different soft wares available. http://www.tech-forums.net/ is another wonderful website that provides a forum for your discussions. A number of topics are available on which you can make discussions and ask questions. In this website information about web technology, soft wares and games are easily available. It is a very informative website. Other forums are also widely available where you can place a question and get an instant solution to your problem. Works Cited Burns, Elizabeth. Firewall vs. Antivirus. eHow, 2010.Web. 31 March 2012. http://www.ehow.com/facts_6157774_antivirus-vs_-firewall.html Internet-computer-security.com.Why do I need both antivirus and firewall for complete protection. Internet-computer-security.com. 2011. Web. 31 March 2012. http://www.internet-computer-security.com/Security%20Guides/Why-do-I-need-a-Firewall-and-Anti-Virus.html Gordano messaging suite. Gordano Knowledge Base. Gordano limited. 2012. Web. 31 March 2012. http://www.gordano.com/kb.htm?q=1484 Antivirusfirewallsoftware.org. Antivirus Firewall Software. Antivirusfirewallsoftware.org. 2007. Web. 31 March 2012. http://www.antivirusfirewallsoftware.org/ Horowitz, Michael. Removing Spyware. Michael Horowitz, 26 May. 2010. Web. 31 March 2012. http://www.michaelhorowitz.com/removespyware.html Read More