Adware
From Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia written in simple English for easy reading.
Adware is an advertising computer program that can be installed by other people on your computer, sometimes without your permission. It is a controversial topic because sometimes business companies put the program so they can see what you are doing or what web pages you are browsing. They then put an advertisement that is of the same subject as the web-page you are looking at. This can be good if you are looking to buy something, but many people do not want advertisment pop ups or banners. Many people also do not want other people to find out what they are doing or what web pages they are looking at. An example is in the popular peer to peer file sharing program, Kazaa. When you download the official release, it installs adware on your computer, that then sends you advertisments. Some people do not like this so they use an illegally modified version of this program called Kazaa Lite.
[edit] Removal tools
Removal tools have been developed to assist users in clearing out these unwanted programs. Like many programs that you use for security, you must update the installed program often. Updating allows the removal tool to recognize new types of adware. This can be done by downloading files over the internet using the 'update' option in the program.
[edit] Popular brands
- Lavasoft Ad-Aware (SE, Plus, Professional)
- Ad-Aware SE (Special Edition) is a computer program for that will scan for and remove adware, spyware, trojans and dialers from your computer. It is made by a company called Lavasoft, based in Sweden. This SE version can be downloaded for free, and you can buy other versions which may be better. This program is closed source and you must agree with the licence in order to use the program. The licence says that it is free only for domestic non-commercial users (people using the computer at home, who do not use the computer for business). If you use the product otherwise, as a school or university, or you are a charity or NGO, you must register or use Ad-Aware Plus or Ad-Aware Professional instead. These are commercial programs.
