The topic Lee and I have chosen to research for our project is Spyware. Spyware is typically defined as Advertising Supported Software (Adware). Most of the time this type of software is installed when you download "free" software. The software you download is advertised as free, however the developers of the software get paid by other large companies to advertise their products within the software in the form of banner ads. This type of advertisement is noticed by the user and can usually be cleared away, however there is also a program running in the background that most users are usually unaware of. This program is tracking software that runs in the background of your operating system that tracks down the types of internet sites you visit and sends this information to another computer for marketing purposes. .
We have chosen this topic because a lot of people are totally unaware of this type of software that may be installed on their machines and the problems this software can cause. There are many questions that we would like to address concerning spyware. Some of them are: What are the most common types of spyware? Is it legal or ethical? Are there illegal versions of spyware out there? How can I prevent the use of spyware on my machine?.
Not only is spyware a potential invasion of privacy, but it also can various problems with your computer. Some of those problems consist of your machine slowing down particularly while you are on the internet, some of your programs may no longer work as they did before the spyware was installed, and also may increase the amount of advertisements you receive when you are on the internet.
Another type of spyware is not a marketing tool. It is actually a method of spying on another user while they are on the computer through software secretly installed without the users consent. This type of software is not legal, however it is still being distributed.