Previous First Lady Hilliary Clinton Becomes An Aim of Spyware Scam - By: Isaiah Henry

Surprisingly, even the Former First Lady could not steer clear of a malware scam. �Round the clock security, a professional IT staff, the latest technology and software security were not enough to protect Senator Hillary Clinton�s campaign from this malicious intruder. Beginning in February, 2008, supporters and constituents of the Senator from New York began receiving emails entitled �Hillary Clinton Full Video�. The emails contained no video footage of Mrs. Clinton; it contained malware instead.

Earlier this year email was widely distributed with the subject line �Hillary Clinton Full Video�. Because of the intense and ground-breaking level of interest in the election this year, many people opened the email to view the presidential-hopeful up close and personal. Unfortunately, they were in for a surprise; and it was not a good surprise.

Many computer users don�t know what malware is; even the media uses the term incorrectly on a regular basis. Some describe malware as a computer virus, it isn�t. Malware is a computer program or code that was developed strictly to interfere with computers around the world. Malware interferes by many means; adware, spyware, Trojan horses, rootkits and viruses are all found in malware. Some malware installs viruses that completely delete the user�s files; often, this can go undiscovered for a short while. The most dangerous computer viruses will slow the computer down, shut-it down and/or cause irreparable damage.

With the popularity of this campaign it is fortunate, and somewhat surprising, that only Ron Paul and Sen. Clinton have been targets of Malware thus far. Spam expert from Symantec, Mr. Douglas Bowers, stated they were concerned this might happen due to the interest in the election this season. Per Mr. Bowers �We predicted there would be socially-engineered spam for the election season and now it�s arrived. We are seeing a low volume of this now, but we expect it to increase as we approach the election and to use other candidates�.

Once opened, the email contained a link to a page set up to look like a Google search page. It was not affiliated with Google in any way; instead, it was the way malware was able to install itself onto the operating systems. Once in place, the malware scam is free to install spyware, adware, viruses, worms and rootkits. Some viruses are so dangerous they can cause moderate to severe damage to your computer.

F-Secure, internet software manufacturer reports that more malware was developed during 2007 than in the last twenty years combined. It seems malware is here to stay, at least for awhile. Since it is a part of life these days, all computer users are wise to consider ways to avoid malware scams. Internet security packages cannot block all malware all of the time; they do block a lot of it though.

Investing in security software for your computer is worth doing. The other thing computer users can do is to exercise caution, particularly when opening email. If possible, do not open ANY email that comes from an unknown source. While nothing is foolproof just yet, doing these two things will greatly enhance your chances of avoiding an attack of a malware scam.

About the Author

At RemoveSpywareandAdware.com, we are proud to have Isaiah Henry as an expert on how to remove spyware software or without any software. Discuss and ask questions on any of your PC security concerns on theSpyware Forum.

Article Directory Source: http://www.articlerich.com/profile/Isaiah-Henry/20667

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