Anti-viruses and Spyware
All viruses are harmful while not all spyware is harmful. Anti-virus software detects and removes viruses but has no effect on spyware. Anti-spyware software detects and removes spyware but does not affect viruses.
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Virus
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Viruses harm computers by taking up disk space and using the processor without the knowledge or consent of the computer user, states The Pennsylvania State University. Most copy themselves and some send undetectable copies of themselves to other networked computers.
Anti-virus
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A good anti-virus program is updated as soon as a new virus is found and a solution created. Regular weekly updating of virus definitions produced by the anti-virus software makers is critical to protecting the computer. Leo Notenboom of Ask Leo, a computer programmer, explains that while you can have two anti-virus programs installed, you cannot have more than one real-time protection scanner running as this could lead to software conflicts and false positives.
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Spyware
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Spyware is a program that gathers computer usage information in the background and sends this information to the creator through the Internet, states Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Spyware is also known as adware when its purpose is to gather information about the user for advertising purposes. They are often difficult to remove.
Anti-Spyware
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Anti-spyware programs such as Ad-aware and Spybot Search & Destroy, recommended by Worcester Polytechnic Institute, remove spyware and can be run simultaneously with anti-virus programs without conflict. These programs should be run on a weekly basis. While both programs can be installed, only one real-time spyware scanner should be allowed to remain active to avoid potential conflict.
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References
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