A Key Logger is an application that, once downloaded, starts logging (writing in to a log file) all the keyboard keys you are pressing. Once your keys have been logged the log file is sent to a computer for analyzing. Basically, the file is tested against your Personal Details with the hope of robbing you. The details could of been got earlier or are in the log file. For example. When you book a Flight you have to fill out a purchase form, stating Credit Card details, in order to buy the ticket. So suppose I put my Name, Address, Credit Card details and so on. The log file might look like this:
www.StupidFlightBookers.com
John Cairns
AddressVISA
1234567890123456
6789
ROMA
ITALY
2 Weeks
The analyzing computer would know how to digest my information based on the fact it knows the www.StupidFlightBookers.com purchase form always asks for information in the above order. In other words, it would know that line 4 contains my credit card type and line 5 contains my credit card number for example. It is not long before the person(s) behind the scam have all my personal details and credit card details. From which they can get a New Bank Account, Mobile Phone and so on in my name.
MALWARE
Malware stands for MALicious softWARE. It is a generic term used to describe software applications that are designed to attack, degrade or prevent the normal (intended) use of a network and its connected computers. Types of malware can include Viruses, Worms, Trojans as well as software that intrudes on your privacy (usually for fraudulent purposes - Identity Theft and Spyware).
COOKIES
What is a Cookie you might ask! You would be forgiven for saying A Biscuit! A cookie, in computer terminology, is in fact a computer text file that stores information about you, your account, your password and so on. Up until a few years ago the cookie was a good thing, as the following scenario demonstrates:You go on the Internet and find a public forum you like, such as The Dogs And Cats public forum. It allows you to ask questions and answer questions about Dogs And Cats as long as you are a registered member. So you decide to become a register member by filling out their registration form, whereby they then e-mail you a Username and Password. Whenever you want to visit the forum you simply log-in with your username and password. When you have finished your visit you simply log-out. No problems with this scenario so far....is there? Well yes, there is.
The problem here is that you have to log-in each time by entering your username and password. Wouldn't it be better to be able to automatically log-in? Of course it would. And that is where the cookie comes into action. After registering and then logging-in for the first time a cookie file is created on your computer. It stores details like your username and password, so that when you visit the forum again it automatically checks your cookie for the username and password and then logs you in automatically.
What a great thing the cookie is....or should that be was. As time has gone by Spyware websites have been slowly abusing the cookie to extract information from you. For example. If you go to a travel agent website and buy a ticket to Rome, for example, the travel agent might create a cookie that stores your personal details and your travel details. And the next time you fly with them, say to Paris, they create a cookie called paris. And so on. The purpose of a cookie is to help.
So in this example the cookie might be fed into their website and then it either shows you a special offer to Rome or Paris (because it knows you went there before) or it suggests a different destination for you. That is a helpful cookie. However. Because the website is a spyware website it also sends your travelling habits to advertising companies, who in turn send you junk mail. Some to do with Holidays but others to do with Caravans, Tent Sales and so on. Other spyware websites can go further. They can fraud you. It doesn't take much for them to make a fake travel website, with cookies that store your credit card details. If you think about it, you normally pay for a holiday months in advance - Plenty of time for them to be using your credit card details for other purposes.
So what can you do about it? Well, quite a lot actually! You could start by not giving out too much of your personal information. For example. If you shop online, to buy a TV for example, does that company really have to know everything about you? And once you know the company has your order (i.e. they sent you a confirmation e-mail) you should delete their cookie from your computer straight away. See Clearing Browser Historysection for more information. Finally. Before filling out any kind of registration form, travel agent form and so on always ask that website owner and/or company about their cookie policy. The honest websites/companies will always inform you that cookies are being created. Some even put up a banner/notification stating you are visiting a website that stores Cookies.
SYMPTOMS
If every time you use the computer it starts to slow down, freeze, crash and/or restart, or completely stop every few minutes you might have a Virus, Worm, Spyware or all three. They will not always show themselves by displaying obvious pop-up advertisements. It depends who the programmers are. Amateurs, Show-Offs or Criminals. Show-Offs might purposely advertise their work to gain recognition whereas Criminals are the opposite. They try to disguise their work as not to leave a trace of it. The amateur on the other hand is trying to become either a Show-Off or a Criminal but has not got there yet. Their work tends to crash the computer and/or be a nuisance copier/deleter of files. Of course it could just be that the computer is naturally slow and/or does not have any adequate protection installed on it, but if the computer is not naturally slow and/or does have adequate protection installed on it then you must assume the computer has been attacked.
ONLINE SAFETY TIPS
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