Spyware vs. Virus

If you were to ask most people what the number one Internet threat to their computer is, you would probably hear the majority of them say that viruses pose the greatest threat.  However, that couldn't be further from the truth.

5 Years ago, viruses outnumbered spyware but today the reality is far different as 8 out of every 10 computer infections are spyware related infections.  But that number alone only tells half the story as spyware is a much more malicious and dangerous than viruses ever were.

A virus is meant to spread computer to computer by scanning networks for nodes that are active and vulnerable and then attacking those that it finds - it was essentially created to cause havoc on corporate networks and bring comptuers screeching to a halt.  Viruses can spread by themselves without any user intervention or interaction at all.  While that in and of itself is harmful and damaging, it is nothing compared to what spyware can do.

Spyware, by defintion, is a program that installs itself on your computer without your knowledge or consent but the main difference is that spyware does not spread computer to computer and does require some sort of user action for it to install - such as downloading an infected file, visiting questionable websites that will infect you without you knowing, or using peer to peer file sharing networks where half the files being shared are infected with some sort of spyware or adware.  But when you dig deeper into why spyware exists, you find that it is created for the sole purpose of making money and that is why it poses a far greater threat than viruses ever did.

Spyware programmers can profit from their software via one of two ways - the first of which is luring you to click on false and misleading advertisements (which can be for anything imaginable but the focus lately has been on rogue security products) for which they get paid when you either click on the ad or take some sort of action after you click such as purchasing a product.

The second method that spyware programmers use to profit is by stealing unsuspecting users' identity.  This is done by logging keystrokes, browsing habits, websites visited, etc. and then sending that information off to a remote server where cyberhackers who then filter the data to gain access to credit cards, bank accounts, and ultimately the user's identity.

The bottom line is that while not having virus protection running on your computer can cause you a lot of headaches and at the worst possibly having to reload your computer, not having spyware protection running on your computer can cost you a whole lot more.