Did you know that 8 out of 10 PC's are infected with some sort of Spyware, with an average of 24.4 spies per PC scanned? Microsoft estimates that 50% of all PC crashes are due to spyware. Likewise, Dell reports that 20% of all technical support calls involve spyware.

Spyware refers to a broad category of malicious software intended to take partial control of a computer. It monitors the websites and types of e-mails you receive and displays pop ups based on the content that you were previously reading, hence the name spyware. Working along side spyware are other annoying programs that run in the background called adware. Adware is any software package that is usually bundled up with other software (almost all P2P software has adware - eg. Kazaa, Ares, etc.

) with the sole purpose to display advertisements after the software has been installed. This is one of the main reasons for pop ups. Together these two are detrimental to a computer's stability. Spyware and adware consume a lot of memory and sometimes even space.

Consequently, a computer will most likely slow down with these other processes running in the background. Sometimes the amount of threats builds up ultimately resulting in a hard drive crash. It is imperative to have protection from these annoyances. Today, computers are vulnerable to spyware and adware, especially since different types are created everyday.

Moreover, average computers have horrible security to begin with. Spyware and adware are the reasons for pop-ups, computer crashes, delay in response time, and your computer just being slow! Most of the time, these annoying programs get installed on your computer without you knowing. Sometimes you may be surfing websites that install spyware and adware that you aren't even aware of. Nowadays, spyware and adware have creative ways of getting on to your computer. Some pose as software trying to help you remove viruses and some pose as flash games. Spyware can even be installed on your computer with just a simply click of a link.

Whatever the case, today it is important to have the proper programs that protect you from these threats. It is too easy to accidentally click a link or to get confused with pop ups and do not know whether to click yes or no. Even if a user is careful with the sites they visit and make sure to close pop ups with out clicking them, it is almost impossible to avoid spyware nowadays. As a word of advice, be sure to protect your computer and run occasional scans. To learn more, please visit: http://www.ezniche.

com/data/article.php?l=370.

I am currently working as a computer support technician. For more information on removing spyware and adware visit: http://www.ezniche.com/data/article.php?l=370