nnoying pop-ups, sluggish Web surfing and programs that mysteriously appear on your hard drive often bog down your computer and make something as simple as opening Internet Explorer a chore.

Small programs that disrupt your use of the Internet, usually installed on your computer without your knowledge, are known as "spyware." Spyware programs have infected almost every computer that I've tested to some extent.

Following are some steps to rid your computer of spyware and help secure it from future attacks.

First Step: Acknowledge That You Have a Problem

According to Webopedia.com, spyware is "any software that covertly gathers user information through the user's Internet connection without his or her knowledge, usually for advertising purposes." Your computer might have spyware installed if:

• You close several pop-ups each time you view a new Web site
• Your computer seems sluggish
• You see toolbars on Internet Explorer that you don't remember installing
• You find yourself taking a coffee break while you wait for a page to open on the Internet
• You can't load certain Web sites that others can view
• Your home page has changed without your consent
• You have animated conversations with your computer about its ineptitude

Steps two and three below offer simple tips to help you clean up your computer and get you on your way to a more productive 2005.

Second Step: Repair Spyware Damage Using Free Utilities

Several anti-spyware programs do a great job removing spyware from computers; however, only using one won't always remove everything. I recommend a combination of two programs: Ad-Aware and Spybot. Below are basic instructions that will walk you through installing and using these tools; however, if you need more detailed information, visit my blog: www.merchanttechnology.org .

Ad-Aware is a tool distributed free of charge by Lavasoft for personal use on Windows computers. Lavasoft states that Ad-Aware is designed to provide advanced protection from known spyware, such as "data-mining, aggressive advertising, parasites, scumware, selected traditional trojans, dialers, malware, browser hijackers and tracking components."

Fortunately, the good folks at Lavasoft have not only uncovered these known problems so you don't have to, but they also offer an excellent solution for fighting them.

To download Ad-Aware:

1. Go to www.download.com . Search for Ad-Aware. Scroll down and select the download option next to Ad-Aware SE Personal Edition 1.05.
2. Select Save to Disk.
3. Before installing applications on your computer, close Internet Explorer (or the browser you use) as well as any other applications that you have running.
4. To install: Find the Ad-Aware .exe file where you saved it, and double-click to open it. Follow the prompts. Ad-Aware will check your hard drive for spyware.
5. Running: Once Ad-Aware has run (this takes several minutes), it will display "Scanning Results." Objects recognized are spyware and other malicious software that you don't want.
6. Select all of the items you want to remove. I try to remove all of them (Hint: When you click the right button on your mouse, a menu will pop up that enables you to select all of them).
7. Click Next and Ad-Aware will remove selected spyware.

Ad-Aware will remove a very large portion (if not all) of the spyware from your computer. To remove the smaller and harder to find programs, I recommend using Spybot. Spybot is an anti-spyware application that a collection of developers created. Generous sites that provide free hosting distribute it. While you can download Spybot from several different Web sites, I suggest using www.download.com .

To download Spybot:

1. Go to www.download.com . Search for Spybot. Scroll down and select the download option next to Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.3.
2. Select Save.
3. Before installing applications on your computer, close Internet Explorer (or the browser you use) as well as any other applications you have running.
4. To install: Select Run when prompted, or find the Spybot .exe file where you saved it and double-click to open it. You will be prompted along the way to install various options. At this point you might find a detailed tutorial helpful. Visit the Web site www.safer-networking.org/en/tutorial/index.html .
5. When Spybot opens, select Check for Problems and Spybot will check your hard drive for spyware.
6. After Spybot has located spyware on your computer, select Fix Selected Problems. This will remove the spyware. Your job is complete.

After running Ad-Aware and Spybot, perform a task on the Internet that previously gave you trouble. If you still have problems, consult a local computer expert. You can always find one at a local computer store or even through nationwide chains such as Geek Squad (www.geeksquad.com).

Third Step: Get Offensive

If you run these applications once a month, your computer should remain free of spyware. Each time you run Ad-Aware and Spybot, you will be prompted to download updates. I highly recommend doing this because they remove the most recent forms of spyware your computer might have contracted. You will most likely pick up spyware when you install programs from vendors with which you are not familiar. Staying on top of anti-spyware updates will help solve this problem.

Web browsers also contribute by installing spyware programs without your consent. You can't avoid Internet browsing; however, you can control the browser you use to surf the Internet. Internet Explorer has had some vulnerability to spyware in the past, though Microsoft has done a lot of work to correct these issues. If you want to use Internet Explorer, make sure you run Windows Update.

If you're looking for an alternative Web browser, I recommend Mozilla's Firefox, an open source Web browser. To download it for free, visit www.getfirefox.com .

Don't let spyware get the better of your computer this year. You now know how to solve the problem, and this knowledge will help keep you ahead of the game in 2005.

Joel Rydbeck, Chief Executive Officer of Nubrek Inc., brings his strong background in e-commerce and business process automation to the merchant services industry. Nubrek offers eISO, a software application that tracks clients and provides automated commission and residual calculations. For more information on spyware visit Rydbeck's blog: www.merchanttechnology.org. E-mail him at joel@nubrek.com or call him at 877-390-1887.

NewProducts