As you might have noticed, one of the most common popups that people get is advertisements to remove spyware. This is ironic, since it is these advertisements that are one of the main sources of spyware. If you really do have spyware and want to remove it, there are several things you can do to try to remove it. First, if you are using the Windows operating system, check your "Add or Remove Programs" in your "Control Panel" for anything that you do not recognize. If something seems to be spyware, remove it. Only remove items that are obvious, though. If you don't know what it is, do not remove it. A few common spyware program names that you might see are: Gain, Gator, IstBar, Web_Rebates, CoolWebSearch, Toolbar, Dynamic Toolbar, MyToolbar, and Weatherbug. If, after removing these, you are still getting unwanted popups, then go to http://www.download.com and search for a program called Adaware SE, which is made by a company called Lavasoft. This is a quality piece of shareware that is very effective at removing spyware. It is also the only spyware removal program that I recommend. Once you have downloaded it and installed it, run Windows in Safe Mode and then run Adaware SE. If that does not work or you have no idea what I am talking about, then I recommend you call us to do it for you. You see, since the people that make spyware have a strong financial incentive to make their software difficult to remove, the spyware tends to take on virus-like properties. I have personally seen spyware that, once deleted, recreates itself. The only other software that does this is a virus. It is difficult to remove this type of spyware and unfortunately Adaware, nor any other program I have seen will do it for you. The only way to remove it is manually. It is a tedious process, but it is possible.
Now you know what spyware is and how a person can get it, you should realize what the best solution is: education! The more you know about spyware, the less likely you are to get it on your computer. However, if you do have it and you cannot get rid of it, call the professionals! We can help.
I hope that this article has helped you understand this growing threat and made you more aware of the dangers of clicking on advertisments. Now, tell your friends and help them avoid a lot of headaches! :-D
