Cases When Spyware Can Be Good
December 1st, 2008

When one thinks of spyware, happy thoughts are usually not the first thing to come to mind. People tend to think of multiple unwanted pop-ups, their browsers re-directing, and computer crashing. Other thoughts are about not having any privacy and losing personal information to strangers. Well, there are handy little devices called keyloggers that can be a really good thing for some. Corporations to spy on you and get your personal information do not use these devices. Either yourself or someone else use these in the home to see what is being done on the computer when everyone else is gone. Now this may sound devious at first, but if you or the people in your home are not abusing the computer or doing anything wrong, then there should not be any issues.

Keyloggers come in two designs that remain internal to the system. This means that information is gathered and stored in a specific location for the person who attached the device to see. One type of keylogger is programmable in Windows itself and translates to a hidden file to be viewed later. The other is a small device that is placed between the computer and keyboard. The second one can be programmed to have the information transferred to a second computer for viewing if so desired. Both are very useful to find out screen names and passwords to instant messenger programs as well as full conversations that take place on them. They can decipher e-mails sent as well and look at what sites on the Internet the user is browsing. If one has a screenshot they can program it to take pictures of what is on the monitor at certain intervals of time.

There are two key reasons one may want this installed on their machine. The first is to monitor what web sites and conversations their children frequent when on the computer. Teenagers can usually dismantle the parental control and need to be monitored more closely. Parents can then go see if their children are abusing the Internet or looking up inappropriate material. They would be able to see all the sites their children browsed and see if they were what they were supposed to be looking at. It also works to monitor if the children are on the computer when they know they are not supposed to be. Any key stokes can be checked during a specific time period to see if there was any unauthorized activity. This will also give parents access to their children's instant messenger screen names and passwords. This can let parents screen who is on their children's messenger lists and look up profiles. It will also allow you see what chat rooms your children frequent and if they are appropriate rooms for children. You will get access to all conversations via the keystrokes and the archives.

No one ever want to think that their kids are doing something inappropriate, but it can happen. This type of behavior can get them into serious danger if they don't know what they are dealing with. A keylogger gives parents the heads up on what their children are doing and when so that they can keep their kids safe. There are way to many Internet perverts out there and chat is how they lure them. This is also a good way to learn whether a teenager is using drugs. This is not a tool to pry into your teenagers' personal life and be sneaky. It is a tool that will help keep parents aware of their kids' activities to ensure that they stay safe from online predators and dangerous habits.

The second reason is definitely sneaky but very handy if you are in the situation of suspecting that your partner is having an affair. You will be able to get access their accounts and personal user names and passwords. You can read conversations and find out if the suspicions are true. This can save tons of money on detectives and tons of worry. This will let you know for sure if your suspicions are true or not so less time having to wonder. The keylogger works just the same as described above. You will be able to see what web sites are viewed. You will know if they are involved with online dating or porn sites. With the increase of Internet affairs you can access messenger lists to see who is on them and what types of conversations are taking place. Hopefully, you will only need a keylogger for the first reason and not the second

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