Most people have virus protection installed on their computers. This is a great thing! Many of the virus protection programs out there today protect computers against spyware, adware, and all other known types of malware and viruses. This is also a great thing!
The word malware is the word that quickly replaces the term “malicious software.” It refers to any type of virus or spyware that can enter your computer. A few years ago, the only type of malware we had to deal with was computer viruses. The job of a computer virus has always been to annoy computer operators to one degree or another.
A nuisance and a threat
Some viruses were written simply as jokes. A computer expert can write such a script for entertainment. On the other hand, the purpose of a computer virus may be to kill your computer forever! Worse still, the goal of a virus could be to shut down a large computer network. This is generally known as cyber-terrorism.
Spyware is closely related to viruses. The subtle difference is that a person who writes a virus aims to damage your computer. Someone who writes spyware often steals your passwords, bank account numbers, and the like. If you damage your computer’s operating system while doing so; Oh good.
Stealing your power
Viruses and spyware slow down computers because they use computer resources to do whatever they are doing. They are computer programs. Like all computer programs, some of them run on XP, others on Windows Vista, and so on.
Unlike normal programs, they don’t have an icon on your desktop, so you can start it if you want. Viruses run on their own terms. You also don’t have the option to turn them off. Many viruses replicate themselves. So if a computer virus program steals some of your resources, 50 of them, which could be a virus that has replicated 50 times, it could completely ruin you.
Ubiquitous spyware
I have also seen spyware render computers useless. Spyware alone does not replicate. However, it is not uncommon to find a PC unprotected from spyware with over 1,000 spyware infections. With so much spyware present on a hard drive, the operating system will do its best to try to adapt to it. In a situation like this, you probably won’t be able to start any of your programs, like Word or IE for example.
The bottom line is that viruses and spyware have the ability to keep your operating system and microprocessor busy to the point where you won’t get any response from your computer, or at best a very slow response. Therefore, it is very important to keep your computer free from these things. I recommend using a good virus protection program that removes all types of spyware as well.
It is also highly advisable to have a registry cleaner on hand. From what I’ve seen, registry corruption has slowed down more computers than anything else. There is nothing malicious about it. It just happens from normal use and tends to make computers very slow.