Spyware is any application that collects information about your computer activities and then sends that information to another individual or company without your knowledge or permission. Spyware arrives bundled with freeware or shareware, through email or instant messenger, as an Active X install, or by someone with access to your computer. Once on your drive, spyware secretly installs itself and goes to work. Unlike traditional personalization or session cookies, spyware is difficult to detect, and difficult (if not impossible) for the average user to remove. There are several different kinds of spyware, including:

• Trojan Horses
  Trojans are malicious programs that appear as harmless or desirable applications. Trojans are designed to cause loss or theft of computer data and to destroy your system. They give an attacker unrestricted access to the computer.
  System Monitors/Keyloggers
  System monitors are applications designed to monitor computer activity to various degrees. These programs can capture virtually everything you do on your computer including record all keystrokes, emails, chat room dialogue, web sites visited, and programs run.
  Adware
  Adware is advertising-supported software that displays pop-up advertisements whenever the program is running.
  
• Adware Cookies
  Cookies are pieces of information that are generated by a web server and stored on your computer for future access. Some web sites now issue adware cookies, which allow multiple web sites to store and access cookies that may contain personal information and simultaneously share the information with other web sites.

Avoiding Spyware

Many steps can be taken to avoid getting Spyware and to remove it if it is on your computer.