KEYLOGGER

Many of us know about Spyware because they have been a victim of one type of spyware or another. Spyware is a definite term specific for applications and software that log information about a user's online behavior and report back to the software's creator. This may affect programs range from unwanted pop-up ads, browser hijacking and more dangerous security crack. This may include the theft of personal information, keystroke logging, changing dialup ISP numbers to expensive toll numbers, and installing backdoors on a system that leave it open for hackers.

Sources of spywares are varied in range. In most cases Spyware is crept into the computer through banner ad-based software where the user is convinced to install the free software. However there are many other sources of spywares. These include instant messaging, peer-to-peer applications, popular download managers, online gaming, porn/crack sites, and more. It is interesting that most spyware target exclusively at Microsoft's Internet Explorer web browser. On the contrary users of Mozilla's Firefox and Apple's Safari are barely affected by spyware at all

To prevent keyloggers on the desktop level two types of anti-keylogging software is available from various vendors:

1. Signature based anti-keylogger. These are applications that typically identify a keylogger based on the files or DLLs that it installs, and the registry entries that it makes. Although it successfully identifies known keyloggers, it fails to identify a keylogger whose signature is not stored in its database. Some anti-spyware applications use this approach, with varying degrees of success.
2. Hook based anti-keyloggers. A hook process in Windows uses the function SetWindowsHookEx(), the same function that hook based keyloggers use. This is used to monitor the system for certain types of events, for instance a keypress/mouse-click -- however, hook based anti-keyloggers block this passing of control from one hook procedure to another. This results in the keylogging software generating no logs at all of the keystroke capture. Although hook based anti-keyloggers are better than signature based anti-keyloggers, note that they still are incapable of stopping kernel-based keyloggers.

Summary

With the vast proliferation of spyware in recent years, there has been a growing list of websites and malicious users trying to cash in by installing keyloggers and stealing personal information. Identity theft has become rampant.

The need of the hour is to be aware of such common practices in spyware, and recognize it for what it is: malicious code that should always be avoided. The first step in evaluating ways to combat spyware should be to consider an alternate Web browser, such as Firefox, Safari, Opera, and others. If this is not possible, then steps to detect, combat and remove keylogging spyware must always be taken.