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Adware
Adware or advertising-supported software is
any software package which automatically plays, displays, or downloads
advertisements to a computer after the software is installed on it or
while the application is being used. Some types of adware are also
spyware and can be classified as privacy-invasive software. |
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Advertising functions are
integrated into or bundled with the software, which is often designed to
note what Internet sites the user visits and to present advertising
pertinent to the types of goods or services featured there. Adware is
usually seen by the developer as a way to recover development costs, and
in some cases it may allow the software to be provided to the user free
of charge or at a reduced price. The income derived from presenting
advertisements to the user may allow or motivate the developer to
continue to develop, maintain and upgrade the software product.
Conversely, the advertisements may be seen by the user as interruptions
or annoyances, or as distractions from the task at hand.
Some adware is also
shareware, and so the word may be used as term of
distinction to differentiate between types of
shareware software. What
differentiates adware from other
shareware is that it is primarily
advertising-supported. Users may also be given the option to pay for a
"registered" or "licensed" copy to do away with the advertisements.
Prevention and
Detection
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Programs have been developed to detect, quarantine, and remove
spyware.
As there are many examples of adware software that are also
spyware or
malware, many of these detection programs have been developed to detect,
quarantine, and remove adware as well. Among the more prominent of these
applications are Ad-Aware, Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and Spybot -
Search & Destroy. These programs are designed specifically for
spyware
detection and will not detect viruses.
Almost all commercial antivirus software currently detect adware and
spyware, or offer a separate
spyware detection package. The reluctance
to add adware and
spyware detection to commercial antivirus products was
fueled by a fear of lawsuits. Kaspersky, for example, was sued by Zango
for blocking the installation of their products. Zango software and
components are almost universally detected as adware nowadays. |
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