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Spyware
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The Spyware that Shagged Me 
by Joel Walsh
With spyware's costing the world billions of dollars in computer 
damage, identity theft, and time spent removing it, many people have just one 
question: Who are these people who keep falling for a spy?

Well, I’m here to tell you who these spyware dupes are, or at least 
some of them.

They’re me.

Yes, I admit it: I harbored spyware on my computer for nearly three 
months. Yes, I knew it was there. But I thought it was the Roger Moore 
kind of spyware, the dangerous-in-a-good-way kind of spy, the spy that 
only hurts the bad guys, the spy that loves you. Instead, it was the 
Mike Meyers kind of spyware, and it shagged me rotten.

How could I be such a dupe, especially when I, someone who works 
entirely on the internet, knew that deep down all spyware is ultimately more 
Austin Powers than James Bond?

How Spyware Shags You 
Or, Possible Reasons for Me Harboring Spyware on My Computer for Three 
Months

First, just for fun, let’s look at the theories at why people allow 
spyware to lurk:

• They don’t know they have spyware, plain and simple.
• They know they have spyware but don't know how much trouble it can 
cause.
• They know they have spyware and how much trouble it can cause, but 
they don't know how to remove it.
• They are chronically lazy, stupid, or just perpetual procrastinators. 
OK, the terms used aren’t quite that specific, but that’s the general 
idea.


Why Savvy Web Users Get Shagged
Or, The Real Reason I Let Spyware Lurk

So how did the spyware sneak onto my machine? It didn't have to sneak 
at all. Technically, at least, I gave my permission for it to be 
installed, as do millions of others.

It began with an article I'd read about an old film that wasn't being 
released for some reason or other, but that had found second life on 
peer-to-peer file-sharing networks. I won't say which file-sharing 
software I downloaded to get on this network, but no sooner had I installed 
it than kazaam! my computer had unwanted software out the kazoo. I 
later read in a newspaper article that permission to install the spyware 
was included in the software's standard license agreement, the little 
screen filled with text that shows up when you start to install software.

I had come across a couple pieces of the software a few times in the 
next three months. But every time I tried to uninstall it, it informed 
me that doing so would disable the file-sharing software. I should have 
just let the file-sharing software go, but since the little mystery 
programs hadn't caused any trouble I could see, I didn't think it was 
worth the bother.


Flushing Out the Spies

I finally got rid of the spyware not long ago.

No, I didn't suddenly discover the spyware, or what is was, or that it 
was harmful, nor did my lazy, stupid ways correct themselves.

What happened?

Photoshop.

Well, not actually Photoshop. It was a cheaper graphics program, but 
only slightly less resource-hungry. 

My six-month-old Centrino laptop couldn't run the graphics software and 
my email software at the same time.

I did a Ctrl-alt-delete to see what other programs might be running 
quietly out of view. I found a dozen mysterious applications toiling 
away, sucking up almost a quarter of the system resources not taken by the 
operating system, anti-virus software, firewall, and other essentials.

A quick scan with an anti-spyware program unmasked the mysterious 
intruders as the "companion software" installed by the file-sharing program.

My computer has been running fine ever since. Yes, I'm lucky that this 
spyware was really the adware kind and not the kind that goes searching 
for credit card numbers. In fact, the file-sharing program claims 
repeatedly on their homepage that they do not install spyware in any shape 
or form, since the only spying it does is on your web browsing, in 
order to serve targeted advertising. But, I've learned my lesson: even if 
a spy only steals your computer resources and not your money, you're 
still getting shagged.

Joel Walsh writes for http://www.spyware-refuge.com on how to remove 
spyware: http://www.spyware-refuge.com?%20Download%20Spyware%20Removal 
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