12. Anti-virus & anti-spyware software

Anti-virus software

This is special software which is used to detect viruses and to limit their damage by removing them.

The software tries to detect viruses before they can get access to your computer. If a virus is detected trying to get through the firewall, the software will give an alert and ask how you want to respond. The software will also scan any attachments within emails before you open them.

It is important that anti-virus software is updated regularly by going to the manufacturers site. Although the software was up-to-date when you bought it, within a few weeks, new viruses will have been released which your software won't know how to detect.

The manufacturers provide downloads to make sure that your software can identify all of the latest threats.

It is also important to run an 'anti-virus' scan regularly, just to make sure that there aren't any viruses lying dormant on your system.

Anti-spyware software

Spyware is software that can can collect and relay personal information without your knowledge. For example a key-logger can record and send all keystrokes made on the compromised computer. Some capture screen shots as well.

Sometimes spyware can change the configuration of your computer without your consent.

Many types of spyware are designed to be difficult to remove. Often, if you uninstall it then you may well find that it reappears as soon as you restart your computer.

Anti-spyware software can be installed on the network or at home to help protect computers against pop-ups, slow performance and security threats caused by spyware and other unwanted software.