Thanks to yodandy from IGN:
If youre concerned about youre online privacy read on ,if not see ya later you dont need this information...
What is SPYWARE ?
Spyware is software or hardware installed on a computer without the user's knowledge which gathers information about that user for later retrieval by whomever controls the spyware.
Spyware can be broken down into two different categories, surveillance spyware and advertising spyware.
Surveillance software includes key loggers, screen capture devices, and trojans.
These would be used by corporations, private detectives, law enforcement, intelligence agencies, suspicious spouses, etc.
advertising spyware is software that is installed alongside other software or via activex controls on the internet, often without the user's knowledge, or without full disclosure that it will be used for gathering personal information and/or showing the user ads.
Advertising spyware logs information about the user, possibly including passwords, email addresses, web browsing history, online buying habits, the computer's hardware and software configuration, the name, age, sex, etc of the user.
As with spam, advertising spyware uses the CPU, RAM, and resources of the user's computer, making the user pay for the costs associated with operating it.
It then makes use of the user's bandwidth to connect to the internet and upload whatever personal information it has gathered, and to download advertisements which it will present to the user, either by way of pop up windows, or with the ad banners of ad-supported software.
All of this can be considered theft in the cases of advertising spyware that installs without disclosure.
one of the best sites for anti spyware information and for fighting spyware..
http://www.spywareinfo.com/articles/spyware/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anti Spyware/Adware scanners/prevention:
Spybot Search & Destroy:
http://security.kolla.de/index.php?lang=en&page=download
Adaware:
http://www.lavasoftusa.com
Spy sweeper:
http://www.webroot.com/wb/products/spysweeper/index.php
Spyware Blaster:
http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html
SpywareGuard:
http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareguard.html
list of the top spyware detection and prevention programs.
http://www.spywareinfo.com/downloads.php
commercial and free programs reviewed.
Adware, Spyware and other unwanted "malware" - and how to remove them
main anti-Adware/Spywareinformation page..:
http://www.cexx.org/adware.htm
http://www.cexx.org/adware.htm?thing=spyware
other excellent links include;
http://www.simplythebest.net/info/spyware.html
http://www.thiefware.com/links/
The stealing of traffic from independent Web site publishers has become the biggest threat to the survival of the Internet to date..
http://scumware.com/
‘Parasite’ is a shorthand term for “unsolicited commercial software” — that is, a program that gets installed on your computer which you never asked for, and which does something you probably don’t want it to, for someone else’s profit.
The parasite problem has grown enormously recently, and many millions of computers are affected.
Scan your computer for parasite/spyware with this excellent site.
you will need activex enabled.
http://www.doxdesk.com/parasite/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Red Sheriff is a Java applet that many websites are using to spy on visitors internet usage, it sends data to imrworldwide.com servers.
Information is available from :
Spywareinfo.com
And also :
http://www.cexx.org/sheriff.htm
Note: spyware detectors will not find it, but closing your browser and emptying the cache should remove it, and any of the above options should prevent any further infection.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What To Do If Your Browser Has Gone crazy
These instructions apply to browser hijack victims as well as anyone trying to get rid of a stubborn piece of spyware.
The instructions are basically the same for each circumstance.
Spywareinfo.com
========================================================================================
WEBBUGS nasty little critters that are invisible undetected and just as nosey as spyware;
A Web bug is a graphic on a Web page or in an Email message that is designed to monitor who is reading the Web page or Email message. Web bugs are often invisible because they are typically only 1-by-1 pixel in size. They are represented as HTML IMG tags.
What information is sent to a server when a Web bug is viewed?
The IP address of the computer that fetched the Web bug
The URL of the page that the Web bug is located on
The URL of the Web bug image
The time the Web bug was viewed
The type of browser that fetched the Web bug image
A previously set cookie value
http://www.privacyfoundation.org/resources/webbug.asp
the free WEBWASHER classic
is curently one of the only programs that will filter them,
and bugnosis is a program that will detect most webbugs but cannot stop them...
if you have a firewall with the function to block images by size then this may be enough to prevent them...or if your lucky your firewall will block them for you.
Webwasher
Bugnosis Web Bug Detector
(shows webbugs but doesnt block them)
Reveal Web Bugs Find out who's tracking you on the Web.
Stop Bugging Me, Two clicks from Bugnosis and you can send an e-mail to the major sources of Web bugs. ...
http://www.bugnosis.org/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Spyware info spyware active x scanner
This scanner is an ActiveX applet.
After a short delay in which your browser downloads the control file, you will receive a "Warning Dialogue" requesting permission for the scanner to run.
Click "Yes" and the applet will pop up and scan.
You will be alerted if any spyware is found.
When a spyware or malware is found, you will be alerted and asked if you want to remove it.
If no spyware is found, the scanner will disappear on its own.
http://www.spywareinfo.com/xscan.php
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOOGLE directories are one of the best places to start your searches from:
Google Directories
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"While many people in the anti-spyware sector are doing this mostly because they are dedicated to security and privacy, there are always a few black sheep trying to make quick money using the fear of many users."
Two such black sheeps are BulletProof software with their Spyware and Adware Remover and TrekBlue with their SpywareNuker.
Both products are based on a hacked version of the Spybot-S&D database.
Evidence for this is very clear as the Spyot-S&D contains quite some entries to determine such theft.
These entries are wrong entries, some detecting things that do not really exist, some detecting minor threats under the wrong name, etc..
These tricks are absolutely harmless to the normal user of Spybot-S&D, but do clearly identify a stolen version of the Spybot-S&D database.
Both products mentioned above detect exactly the same 'mistakes' the Spybot-S&D database contains.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Two common examples of known spyware:
WinWhatWhere Investigator runs in the background, hides itself from the user, logs keystrokes, takes periodic screenshots of user activity, sends out logs by email, connects to the internet by itself, and allows remote users to connect to your PC.
Spectorsoft's eBlaster record emails, chats, instant messages, web sites visited and keystrokes typed and then automatically sends this recorded information to the email address of the person spying.
The spy gets an activity report of latest chats, instant messages, keystrokes and web sites visited, plus a summary of all emails. You can install it normally, or you can send it to a target machine as an email attachment the same as any other virus or trojan.
The End.