It's a regular day. You turn on your computer and for some reason, when you open Internet Explorer; your home page is different. You are confused by the unfamiliar page full of advertisements or clickable keywords. You figure out how to reset the page to your normal homepage and go about your merry way.

The next day, you turn on your computer and run into the very same problem. Your new homepage says something like coolsearch and the same banners or advertisements appear. You're perplexed as to why this keeps happening. You also notice that your computer runs very slowly and you're seeing more pop-up advertisements than usual.

You've been attacked by Spyware. Spyware has made its way into your computer. This isn't detected by most Antivirus software; this is a different type of attack. Not only is your homepage reset and your system slow and filled with advertisements but also your every move may be being recorded and e-mailed in the background to the culprit responsible for that Spyware software.

Downloading a Spyware fighting product is your best course of action. Choosing a package will remove the program from your system. It will also protect you against new threats by continually checking for Spyware or Adware or any malicious programs and getting rid of them. Spyware can be contracted easily. Many programs or downloads out there have these files hidden. You may have installed it when downloading a song, sharing a file or installing what appeared to be a fun or helpful toolbar on your homepage. Spyware has many ways of sneaking into your system and can wreak havoc once it arrives. Not only does it use valuable resources rendering your computer practically useless but it can also send your passwords, pin numbers and other confidential information to an outside party.

Watching for suspicious behavior and acting on it with a Spyware fighting program is the best way to handle this problem. Resetting your homepage and installing a pop-up blocker may only temporarily alleviate the problem. Your every keystroke could still be recorded and the next time you turn your computer on, you could be faced with the very same problems.

In this day and age, there are many marketing programs out there that people try to benefit from. Many benefit from forcing people to click on advertisements that they receive a commission for. When you click on the advertisements on that new homepage, someone is profiting from this activity. When you purchase something online, although it appears that the site you are buying it from is secure, if you have Spyware on your computer somewhere, your system could be breaching that privacy by sending your keystrokes to a third party. Combating this problem with Anti-Spyware software is your best bet for keeping your computer at peak performance and private information secure.