Spyware

Spyware is software that is installed in a computer without the user's knowledge and transmits information about the user's computer activities over the internet.

Is someone spying on you?

Spyware is a real threat to all of us.  There are many reasons why someone would want to spy on you.  The most common reason is for financial gain.  People can use the data they gather on you to sell to marketing companies.  Another reason is to get access to your private information such as your passwords to your bank account..  Whether it is the jealous boyfriend/girlfriend stalking you or someone trying to sell your information for financial gain it is not anyone's business accept your own.

Fortunately most of the spyware applications are usually discovered and the anti-spyware software can detect them before they do any harm.  However it is extremely important to make sure your firewall is always on.  The spyware that was secretly installed may not always be detected by the anti-spyware software.  After it has gathered data then it needs to send the data to the source that is spying on you.  The firewall will send up a "red flag" letting you know that something doesn't seem right.  It will prevent the data from sent out from your computer.  So it is equally important to have a firewall.