Is There Any Way You Can Effectively Block Adware?
Has there been some time recently you were enjoying the Internet only to be asked if you would like to place a bet on next year’s World Series? Or maybe to buy a timeshare condominium in south Florida, or even a $2000 chair massager? Have you ever had half a dozen popups block your use of a web page, and not be able to turn them off? If any situation like this has ever happened to you, then you know full well what it is like to have adware infect your computer. Adware blocks your enjoyment of the net and slows down PC performance to a crawl. Worse, it can even be an early warning of still worse things to come. Wherever there is adware, spyware and viruses are likely soon to follow. Some spyware might only report back to some software vendor how you are using their program. But other spyware might also email your credit card numbers to a criminal’s office half way around the world. Viruses and worms can destroy your computer altogether. Even if you avoid the very worst damage these most common types of malware can do to your home computer, the odds are high your hard drive will slow down to a crawl for even the simplest of applications.
Most PC users try block 100% of adware downloads, and employ software to purge it from their hard drives. There is no shortage of software that will blast every trace of adware infecting your computer from your hard drive and disk drives, too, but which ones are the best? Which programs make sure that you never have to deal with adware again? These are important questions to ask and hard questions to answer.
Adware blockers need to do three things. First of all, they have to be up to date with every definition of every adware invader lurking on the World Wide Web. The software vendor must provide regularly updated libraries of definitions. What is a “regular” update? If your software is a week behind the adware programmers it is not going to do you a whole lot of good.
Secondly, adware blocking packages need to do their scans on a regularly scheduled basis without ever needing a prompt from you. They should be set up so that they scan your hard drive on a regular schedule and you never have to click on a manual “scan now” button. Every adware prevention program has to run 24/7. To keep your computer safe from adware attacks, your program also must scan every single file you download and every email you open.
Finally, modern adware programs should be integrated seamlessly into your web browser. This is the only way they can protect you in real time from annoying pop ups. Their list of questionable sites has to be updated all the time, relying on reports from other people who have been attacked, but also on the program developer’s judgment. You want a program that will protect you from adware before it ever strikes your PC.
It is not as hard as it sounds to block adware from your computer. Buy an anti-adware program that keeps its definitions up to date, stops you from clicking on problem websites, and checks every file that comes into your computer. Buy software that analyzes your hard drive without your having to remind it to scan. With the right software, annoying popups and slow performance on your PC will soon become a distant memory.
Written by Graham McKenzie on February 23rd, 2009 with
no comments.
Read more articles on Adware.
- [+] Digg: Feature this article
- [+] Del.icio.us: Bookmark this article
- [+] Furl: Bookmark this article