How Can I Know If Somebody Is Recording My Keyboard Activities?
Keystroke logging, or keylogging, records a user's keyboard activities and saves the data to a log. The log is accessible from another computer via file transfer protocol (FTP), database server, network, email or remote login. Most keyloggers are a form of spyware that infect the computer through sites, email or downloaded software. In other cases, people with physical access to your PC install a keylogging software to track your computer habits; businesses use keylogging software to monitor their employees. To see if someone is recording your keyboard activities, scan your computer for spyware, and then check the processes running on your computer for suspicious applications.
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Instructions
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Download and install an anti-malware tool to the computer. Examples of anti-malware software include Microsoft Security Essentials, BitDefender and Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.
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Click "Update" to check for and download new anti-malware definitions. Once the updates are complete, run a full antivirus scan on the computer to look for keylogging software.
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Remove, quarantine or clean the infected files, depending on the actions recommended by the application. View the log file to see the names of the detected infections, if applicable. Input the name of the malware into a search engine to find out whether or not the infection was a keylogger.
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Hold down "Ctrl," "Shift" and "Esc" to open Task Manager. Click the "Processes" tab. Click "Image Name" to alphabetize the applications.
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Go to ProcessLibrary.com and input the name of each process into the search field, one by one. Click "Search" to look up a process in the database.
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Read the results to see whether or not the software records keyboard activity. If the installed program is a keylogger, write down the name of the application. Then click "Start." Go to "Control Panel."
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Click "Uninstall a Program." Browse the list of installed software for the keylogger. Right-click the program, and then click "Uninstall." Follow the on-screen directions to remove the program from the PC.
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Tips & Warnings
Schedule the anti-malware program to run at least once a week to keep your PC free of spyware.
Assign a password for your user account through the "User Accounts and Family Safety" option in Control Panel. If you have to leave your computer unattended, simultaneously press "Ctrl," "Alt" and "Del" and then click "Lock This Computer," to prevent unauthorized users from installing keyboard tracking programs to your PC.
Resources
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