This
malicious software may be in the form of a virus, adware or spyware.
Many users are not really interested in the actual difference
between them - the mere fact that they can wreak havoc on your
system and result in anything from poor performance to a complete
computer failure is enough to know they need to be avoided!
What is a virus? A
virus is a program that gets loaded onto your computer without you
knowing about it and can potentially cause your PC to stop
functioning and even result in data loss. A virus can create and run
multiple copies of itself. Most people don't realise they have a
virus until their computer starts to run slowly, even such a simple
virus is dangerous because it will quickly use all available memory
and bring the system to a halt. Some viruses are also capable of
moving across networks and bypassing security systems to infect
other computers.
What is spyware?
Spyware and adware are different to viruses because they do not
create copies of themselves and spread, nor do they result in data
loss. The most common symptom of a spyware is that your computer
will start to run very slowly and have trouble connecting to the
internet. At times these programs may invade your privacy and
attempt to share your personal information by transmitting it across
the internet.
The
explosion in Internet usage has seen an ever increasing number of
these threats emerge - making it an absolute necessity for every PC
to be protected. While it is very easy to protect yourself from the
threats it is a much more complicated task to 'clean' a computer
that has been affected, as the saying says "prevention is better
than cure".
