How to Remove Spyware for Free

Have you noticed any unusual behavior on your computer lately like advertisement pop ups? Has your Internet and overall computer working slowed down? Have you installed any program claiming to be an antispyware software, which popped up on your computer while browsing? If yes, then chances are that you may be seeing the symptoms of a virus attack. Of all the kinds of computer viruses that can infect your computer, some of the most dangerous are spyware programs.

These programs masquerade themselves as useful programs, while stealing information from your computer and distributing it over the Internet. Ergo, when you have a lot of personal data stored on your computer, you need to be wary of spyware programs. In this article, I outline a clear strategy explaining how to remove spyware for free and ensure that your personal data stays secure.

What are Spyware Programs?

Spyware programs are designed to compromise the system security of your computer and steal data. Spyware programs like keyloggers can store all the data you enter through your keyboard, which is then sent to hackers, who may use it for identity theft purposes. There are spyware programs that get installed as browser addons, which actually transmit your Internet usage history to third party sites.

Some spyware programs are disguised as antivirus programs, which steal data from your computer, once they are installed. This makes it difficult to spot spware programs. Considering the identity theft threat that these programs pose, you have to get rid of such programs as soon as possible. In the rest of this Buzzle article, you will find some simple techniques to remove spyware for free.

How to Remove Spyware for Free?

You need to take spyware removal quite seriously, if you transmit sensitive information like bank account details, as it has resulted in identity theft cases. Here are three steps that can help you eliminate spyware threats from your computer.

Uninstall Unwanted Add-ons & Freeware Programs
Firstly, get rid of all kinds of suspicious addons, installed on your browsers and freeware programs that you absolutely don't need. Simply go to the 'Add or Remove Programs' section on your Windows based system, to get rid of freeware programs that provide entry to spyware. Go to your web browser's settings and uninstall add-ons like toolbars, which often harbor spyware programs.

Install and Use a Free Antispyware Software
Since spyware is usually quite well hidden and difficult to spot, it's best that you install a free antispyware software which can effectively get rid of them. Two such software programs, which you may rely upon, are AVG free antivirus and avast! Free Antivirus 6. Install any one of these programs and run a full scan of the system. The software will spot and automatically remove most viruses from your system. You may also install the Microsoft Security Essentials software.

Format Hard Drive and Reinstall OS
If your system is too much riddled with computer viruses, the best way of purging the hard drive is to format and reinstall your OS. Using an external hard drive, back up all your private data and then run a complete reformatting of the hard drive, using the recovery disk provided for your OS.

After reinstallation of the OS, install the best free antivirus software and run security updates. If it's a Windows system, make sure that you get all the Windows OS updates. This should effectively solve your problem. In the long term, it is best to spend on specialized antispyware like the Spyware Doctor, which is more thorough in real time scanning for spyware programs.

These were some straightforward tips on how to remove spyware from your computer and keep your data safe and secure. Be careful while installing any kind of browser addon, freeware or shareware as many types of spyware programs piggyback on them. Using any of the above suggested free antivirus software, schedule a daily scan of your computer system. If you find that antivirus programs are not effective, as suggested before, take a backup of all you data and format the hard drive completely. This is the best way of cleaning out all kinds of computer viruses, which may have infected your PC.