transmits that information in the background to someone else.
Spyware can also gather information about e-mail addresses
and even passwords and credit card numbers.
Spyware's similarity to a Trojan horse is the fact that users
unwittingly install the product when they install something
else. A common way to become a victim of spyware is to
download certain peer-to-peer file swapping products that are
available today.
Aside from the questions of ethics and privacy, spyware steals
from the user by using the computer's memory resources and
also by eating bandwidth as it sends information back to the
spyware's homebase via theuser's Internetconnection. Because
spyware isusing memoryand system resources,the applications
running inthe background canlead to systemcrashes or general
system instability.
Startup items Any files placed in this folder will open when the computer
starts. For example, a startup screen, a sound file to be played
when the computerfirst starts, areminder calendar, orapplica-
tion programs can be startup items. Normally, an alias of a file
is placed in this folder rather than the file itself.
System tray Introduced with Windows 95, the system tray is located in the
Windows taskbar (usually at the bottom next to the clock) and
contains miniature icons for easy access to system functions
such as fax, printer, modem, volume, and more. Double click
or right clickan icon toview and accessthe detailsand controls.
TCP/IP Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol - A set of
networking protocolswidely usedon theInternet that provides
communications acrossinterconnected networksof computers
with diverse hardware architectures and various operating
systems. TCP/IP includes standards for how computers com-
municate andconventions for connectingnetworks and routing
traffic.
Trojan A destructive program that masquerades as a benign applica-
tion. Unlike viruses, Trojanhorses do not replicate themselves
but they can be just as destructive. One of the most insidious
types of Trojan horse is a program that claims to rid your
computer of viruses but instead introduces viruses onto your
computer.
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