Rock stars have legions of adoring fans, some of which have less-than-loving motives for following their idol’s every move and gathering all kinds of information about him or her. They’re called stalkers. And they’re the perfect metaphor for spyware.
It is a type of computer program that secretly monitors a victim’s online activities and gathers sensitive data that it then sends to an attacker. It collects usernames, passwords, credit card, and bank account numbers, personal identification numbers (PINs), and email contacts.
How? A spyware pokes its nose into your browsing habits. As such, it knows which sites you frequent, what time you’re usually online, who you often communicate with, and anything else that an attacker can use to his advantage.
Other interesting terms…
