A Guide To Adware And Spyware

Table of Contents:

1. What are adware and spyware?
2. How do you avoid getting adware and/or spyware?
3. Adware/spyware Removal Tools
   1. Ad-Aware SE Personal
   2. Spybot Search & Destroy
4. Virus Prevention/Removal

1. What are adware and spyware?

      Adware is a type of program designed to display advertisements on your computer screen in pop-up windows and/or bars. Not all adware is bad, as some legitimate shareware programs and trial versions of commercial programs contain advertisements to compensate for the cost of development/distribution. However, most of the time these programs are installed without the user's knowledge or consent, and decrease the efficiency of the computer and the user. This type of adware should be removed using a removal tool.

      Spyware is similar to adware. It is almost always installed without the user's knowledge or consent, and decrease the efficiency of the computer and the user. The main difference between spyware and adware is that instead of displaying advertisements like adware, spyware collects information about the user, their actions and their software. This information is then sent to another person (or group of people). The information gathered commonly includes a list of web pages the user visits, their name and address, what programs they use, and a log of the keys pressed. Spyware can also re-direct the user to web pages other than the ones they wish to view and install more spyware, adware and other software.

2. How do you avoid getting adware and/or spyware?

1. Do not visit web pages that you are not familar with, or do not trust. Just by viewing a web page, adware/spyware can be installed on your computer, without any action on your part.
2. If you use Interent Explorer, choose a new web browser. Internet Explorer (Microsoft's web browser, which is pre-installed on every Windows computer) has been shown to allow installation of programs without the user's knowledge. A couple of the more popular alternatives are Mozilla (http://www.mozilla.org/) and Opera (http://www.opera.com/).
3. When asked if you want to install a program, make sure that you want to install it. Only allow the installation to proceed if you know what the program does and where it is coming from.
4. Keep your version of Windows up to date. By keeping your computer fully updated, adware/spyware will have a harder time exploiting vulnerabilities in the operating system, so you will have less problems with adware/spyware.
5. Read the license agreements that come with all software you install. In order to avoid being sued for installing adware/spyware, companies can state that the adware/spyware will be installed in the license agreement. Generally this will only be a problem with downloaded software, but it is a good idea to read the license agreement for all software as you may notice something which would make you want to stop installing that software.
6. Avoid using an administrative account for everyday use (Windows XP/2000 only). Administrative accounts are the only accounts capable of installing programs on your computer. Most adware/spyware will not be able to install itself if the user is not an administrator. Only use administrative accounts when you want to install programs for other users.

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3. Adware/spyware removal tools

       A adware/spyware removal tool is a program which is designed to remove any adware/spyware which is installed on your computer. Generally, these programs do a good job, but no adware/spyware tool is perfect. There will always be new adware/spyware being created by people who would benefit from them, and these newer versions will evolve to stand a better chance of avoiding detection and removal. Much like anti-virus programs, adware/spyware removal tools should be kept updated to ensure that they will be able to detect and remove the newest adware and spyware. Also like anti-virus programs, these tools must be run regularly to ensure that your computer stays adware/spyware-free.

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      Ad-Aware is one of the more popular adware/spyware removal tools. It is able to remove most adware/spyware. It is developed and maintained by Lavasoft. The most current version of Ad-Aware can be downloaded from http://www.lavasoftusa.com/support/download/. The download link is near the bottom of the page, in the 'Ad-Aware SE Personal' section. Click the download link. This will cause a new browser window to open. Once this new page loads, click the 'Download Now' link and wait for the download to start. When asked, tell the browser to save the installer to a location which you will remember (saving to the desktop is easiest to remember).

      Once the download has completed, start the installation program by double-clicking on the file you just downloaded. After the installer has started, you will see this screen:

Click the 'Next' button here.

The next screen is the license agreement screen:

Read the agreement if you want. Check the 'I accept the license agreement' check box, and click the 'Next' button.

The next screen will ask you where you want to install Ad-Aware SE Personal:

The default location will work, but if you wish to install the program to another location, you can do this by clicking the 'Browse' button and finding the location you want to install to in this list. If the directory does not currently exist, type the name in to the box above the list of files/directories, and the installer will create it. When you have found the directory you want to install Ad-Aware SE Personal to, click 'OK'. Click the 'Next' button when you are finished changing the install location.

The next screen will ask you if you wish to allow all users to run Ad-Aware, or if you want to be the only user able to run it:

This choice makes no difference to how the program operates. As the screen says, only users with administrative accounts will be able to run Ad-Aware, so if your account is the only administrative account on the computer, choosing 'Only for me' would reduce the clutter in the start menu for all other users of the computer. If you have more than one administrative account, choosing 'Anyone who uses this computer' would be a good choice, because this would allow any user to run scans for adware/spyware. Click the 'Next' button when you have made this decision.

The next screen asks you to begin the installation process:

Click the 'Next' button if you are ready to install. If you want to go back over the choices you made in previous screens, click the 'Back' button. This button is available on all screens, so you can continue to click the 'Back' button until you find the screen you wish to review.

The installer will now perform any actions necesary to install Ad-Aware SE Personal on your computer. After these actions are complete, you will see this screen:

If you do not want to perform a scan for adware/spyware now, uncheck the 'Perform a full system scan now' box. If you do not wiant to update the scanner, uncheck the 'Update definition file now' box. If you do not want to read the help file, uncheck the 'Open the help file now' box. Once you are done unchecking boxes, click the 'Finish' button to complete the installation process.

Now that installation is complete, you will probably want to update Ad-Aware. This can be done by starting Ad-Aware, either by double-clicking the 'Ad-Aware SE Personal' icon on your desktop, or by finding the 'Ad-Aware SE Personal' item of the 'Lavasoft Ad-Aware SE Personal' folder in your start menu. When you first start Ad-Aware, it will pop up with a window similar to this:

Click the 'OK' button to update the scanner, or click the 'Cancel' button if you do not want, or are not able, to update the scanner now.

If you clicked 'Cancel', the Ad-Aware SE main screen will be displayed. If you clicked 'OK', this screen will be displayed:

Before clicking the 'Connect' button, ensure that you are connected to the internet. If you are not connected to the internet, connect now. Once you are connected to the internet, click the 'connect' button. This will tell Ad-Aware to search for updates for its program.

If new updates are found, you will see a popup similar to this:

Click the 'OK' button to begin downloading and installing updates for Ad-Aware. This may take a few minutes, since this is the first time an update has been performed.

Once the downloads and installs are finished, you will see a screen similar to this screen:

If no new updates are available, you will see this popup:

Click the 'OK' button.

Regardless of whether you downloaded any updates or not, click the 'Finish' button to return to Ad-Aware. The next screen you see is the screen which is normally seen first when starting Ad-Aware:

On this screen, there are a couple of important things. First is the update feature. When clicked, the underlined text 'Check for updates now' will take you through the update process (which was described above). Keeping up-to-date is crucial.

Second is the 'Start' button. This button is located just under the update text. Clicking this button will begin the process of scanning your computer for adware and spyware. When you click this button, you will see this screen:

This screen presents you with a number of scanning options:

• Perform a smart scan:
  Choosing the option 'Perform a smart scan' will scan the areas of your computer which are most likely to contain adware/spyware and related files. This scan will take the least time, but will not be guaranteed to find all adware and spyware installed on your computer.
• Perform a full system scan:
  The 'Perform full system scan' option will do a more thorough scan of your computer, scanning every file on your hard drive(s). This scan will take significantly longer than the smart scan, but if you continue to have adware/spyware problems after doing a smart scan, doing a full scan may be required.
• Use custom scanning options:
  The 'Use custom scanning options' option allows you to control what Ad-Aware scans. When the 'Customize' link is clicked, this screen is displayed:
  
  These options give you more control over what is and is not scanned for adware/spyware. An option with a red X beside it is disabled, and an option with a green check mark beside it is enabled. Options with a grey X beside them are not available for modification.
  
  • The 'Scan within archives' option tells Ad-Aware to scan in compressed files, like zip files.
  • The 'Scan active processes' option tells Ad-Aware to check to see if any adware/spyware is currently running on your computer.
  • The 'Scan registry' option tells Ad-Aware to check the registry for entries which cause adware/spyware programs to start when your computer starts, or when you perform certain actions.
  • The 'Deep-scan registry' option tells Ad-Aware to scan the entire registry for entries related to adware/spyware programs. These entries are usually simply settings for the adware/spyware programs.
  • The 'Scan my IE Favorites for banned URLs' option tells Ad-Aware to check your Internet Explorer bookmarks for URLs to pages/sites which are commonly added by adware/spyware programs.
  • The 'Scan my Hosts file' option tells Ad-Aware to scan your HOSTS file for hijacked URLs. Some adware/spyware programs will modify this file to force you to view pages/sites other than the ones you want to by changing the computer your computer talks to when you enter a certain URL.
  Once you are done changing the scanning options, click the 'Proceed' button to save these changes.
• Scan volume for ADS:
  The 'Scan volume for ADS' option will perform a full scan of your hard drive, looking for Alternate Data Streams (ADS), but not scan any running programs or the registry. This may be useful if you continue to have problems after performing a full system scan. With this option, you must select drive(s)/folder(s) to scan. click the 'Select' link beside 'Scan volume for ADS' option, and then check the box(es) beside the drive(s)/folder(s) you want to have scanned for ADS. Click the 'Proceed' button when you are finished selecting drive(s)/folder(s) to scan.
• Search for negligible risk items:
  The 'Search for negligible risk items' option will tell Ad-Aware to find anything that could be used by spyware to gather information about you and your computer usage. These items are usually lists of last-opened files and tracing cookies. While these items themselves do not pose a significant threat to your privacy, if your computer ever does become infected with spyware these lists would tell whoever gets them what you do on your computer.

The screen while scanning will look similar to this:

When Ad-Aware is finished scanning your computer, you will see something similar to this:

Once you see this screen, click the 'Next' button to bring up the scan summary. If no adware/spyware was found, click the 'Finish' button. It is located in the same place as the 'Next' button in the screenshot above. Also, the next two screens will not appear, and you will be returned to the main Ad-Aware screen.

The summary screen will look something like this:

To remove these adware/spyware/other things that Ad-Aware detected, check the box beside them in the 'Scan Summary' tab, and then click the 'Next' button. This will begin the removal process.

Once you have clicked the button, you will see a popup asking you if you waqnt to remove all of the selected items. The popup will look similar to this:

Click the 'OK' button to remove all selected items, or 'Cancel' if you want to add/remove some items to/from the list of adware/spyware to remove. Once the removal process is complete, the main Ad-Aware screen comes back.

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      Spybot Search & Destroy is another common adware/spyware removal tool. It too is able to remove most adware/spyware. The program's web site is http://www.spybot.info/en/index.html. The download link is in the menu on the left side of the page. Click this link. When the next page has loaded, click the 'Download here' button beside 'Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.3'. On the next page, click one of the 'Download here' buttons, and follow the download directions on the page which loads next. When asked, save the installer to a location which you will remember (like the desktop).

      When the download has completed, start the installer by double-clicking the icon of the file you just downloaded. First, the installer will ask you which language you would like to use for the installation process:

Choose a language you are confortable with. The following screenshots were taken using English as the language for installation.

After selecting a language, the installation process will begin. You will see this screen:

Click 'Next'.

Next, you will bew shown the license agreement:

Read this, and then select the 'I accept the agreement' option.

After the license agreement screen, you will be asked to select a location to install Spybot Search & Destroy to:
You may change this location by pressing browse, and then finding the location you want to install Spybot Search & Destroy to. When the location in the box is where you want to install Spybot Search & Destroy to, click 'Next'.

The next screen will ask you what installation options you want:

If you do not need languages other than the one you are installing with, you can uncheck the box beside 'Additional languages'. If you do not need to change the way Spybot Search & Destroy appears, you can uncheck the box beside 'Skins to change appearance'. When you have selected the installation options you want, click 'Next'.

After selecting which installation options you want, you will be asked to choose a folder in the start menu to put shortcuts for Spybot Search & Destroy:

You can change the name in the box to change where the shortcuts are put, or check the 'Don't create a Start Menu folder' box if you do not want Spybot Search & Destroy to create a folder in the start menu.

The next screen asks you what extra installation options you want:

Check the 'Create desktop icons' box if you want Spybot Search & Destroy to create program icons on your desktop.
Check 'Create a Quick Launch icon' box if you want Spybot Search & Destroy to create a quick launch icon, which is located at the top of the programs list in the start menu.
Check the 'Use Internet Explorer protection (SDHelper)' box if you want Spybot Search & Destroy to protect you while using Internet Explorer.
Check the 'Use system settings protection (TeaTimer)' box if you want Spybot Search & Destroy to preserve your system configuration in case adware/spyware damages it. Click 'Next' when you have finished choosing other installation options.

The last screen before installation begins shows you what installation options you have chosen:

Review these selections, and click 'Next' when you are ready to install Spybot Search & Destroy.

When the installation is finished, you will see this screen:

Check the 'Run SpybotSD.exe' box if you want to run Spybot Search & Destroy now.
Check the 'Run TeaTimer.exe' box if you want to run TeaTimer now to preserve your system configuration. Click 'Finish' when you are done selecting post-installation options.

Now that installaton is complete, you will want to scan your computer. Start Spybot Search & Destroy. Because this is the first time it has been started, Spybot Search & Destroy will help you perform some important tasks.

First, you will be asked if you want to do a registry backup:

Doing this backup is advisable, because registry damage can damage, or destroy, your Windows installation, forcing you to re-install Windows. Click 'Create registry backup' button to do this. Click 'Next' when the backup is done, or if you do not want to perform a backup now.

Next, you will be asked if you want to search for updates:

Updating adware/spyware removal tools is crucial for them to continue to protect your computer. Click the 'Search for updates' button if you want to update, or click 'Next' to skip this step.

If updates for Spybot Search & Destroy are found, click the 'Download all available updates' button:

A screen similar to the following will be displayed while downloads are being performed:

Once the updates have been downloaded, or if there were no new updates, click 'Next'.

You are now at the main screen of Spybot Search & Destroy:

On this screen, there are many important things to remember. First is the 'Update' button. It is above the 'Donations' button. When you click this button, you will see the following screen:

To search for new updates, click the 'Search for Updates' button, located to the right of the 'Search & Destroy' button in the menu on the left edge of the screen.
When this button is clicked, this screen will appear:

When this popup disappears, a list of updates found will be shown, if any were found.

Check the box beside any updates you want to get. Getting all possible updates is recommended. Once you have selected which updates to get, click the 'Download Updates' button, located to the right of the 'Search for Updates' button. When you click that button, this screen will be displayed:

When this screen goes away, your copy of Spybot Search & Destroy is up to date.

Another important thing on the main screen is the 'Immunize' button. Clicking this button will stop some bad products from running on your computer. When you click this button, a screen similar to this will be displayed:

Click 'OK' to make this go away. Nothing else needs to be done here, since it is all automatic.

The most important thing on the main screen is the 'Search & Destroy' button. This is the part of the program that actually scans for and removes adware/spyware. When you click this button, you will see something like this:

When you are ready to begin scanning, click the 'Check for Problems' button. During scanning, you will see something similar to this:

If the scan found any problems, you will see something like this:

Clicking the '+' beside any items in this list will expand the sub-list, to give more details on what was found. Checking the box beside one of the main items will automatically check all boxes in any sub-lists for that item.

When you are ready to begin removing any problems, click the 'Fix Selected Problems' button. If there were any problems with removing the selected problems, you will see this screen:

Click 'Yes' if you want to attempt to remove any remaining problems when you next start your computer. Click 'No' if you want to try again at a different time. Clicking 'Yes' is a better choice because some adware/spyware can not be removed once it has started, and scanning at startup will prevent the adware/spyware from starting.

If no problems were found during the scan, this screen will be displayed:

Either way, once you have removed any problems found, or did not have any problems to be removed, you are finished with the scanning process.

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4. Virus Prevention/Removal

      In addition to adware and spyware, viruses can decrease the efficiency of your computer. Some viruses will install adware/spyware, and some adware/spyware will install viruses. Because of this, it is important to prevent virus infections if you want to keep adware and spyware off of your computer. Some simple things you can do to avoid getting viruses, or to prevent viruses from becoming a large problem, are:

• Do not open file attachments with extensions that are associated with executable files. These include .exe, .bat, .com and .vbs.
• Install a virus scanner which has the ability to scan e-mail as it is being downloaded. This will prevent some e-mail viruses from getting on to your computer.
• Keep your virus scanner up to date, and run scans on a regular basis.
• If you notice anything odd happening while you are using your computer, disconnect from the internet and run a virus and adware/spyware scan. If you have not done an update recently, try to download updates manually from the companies' websites at another computer, and then transfer the updates over to the computer with the problems.

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