Acronis privacy expert corporate User Manual

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Spyware threats glossary
Copyright © Acronis, Inc., 2000-2005 
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Exploit/Security holes 
These are security bugs and vulnerabilities in applications primarily meant for 
Web operations. Through such holes, intruders can corrupt a PC or gain remote 
control over it.  
Remote Administration  
This is a kind of software, including commercial software, designed for remote 
PC control. In some cases, users might not be aware of such applications 
running. 
Sniffers 
Sniffers are programs that capture network traffic (sent and received data 
packets). Sniffers can be a serious threat, able to capture and decrypt user 
names, passwords and private information and prevent normal operation of 
computers and networks in general. As most protocols (FTP, POP, HTTP, telnet) 
have secret information transmitted unencrypted, an intruder can easily gain 
access to a user’s information by setting up sniffer filters and waiting for the 
victim to connect to a server. 
Spyware 
Spyware are programs that secretly gather and transmit personal user 
information. Spyware can be a part of various applications, including commercial 
products. 
Toolbars 
Toolbars can be downloaded to your Web browser to make browsing easier. 
Examples include the Google, Alexa and Yahoo toolbars. Even though these are 
very handy to use, they have the ability to track everything you do on the 
Internet and to pass that information back to the owners of the toolbars. Be sure 
to read the terms and conditions page before you download any toolbar. 
Trojan Horses (Trojans) 
Trojans are specially created programs that are deployed to PCs imitating useful 
applications and utilities. They can result in failures, lock-ups or even complete 
data destruction. Trojans are spread via mailing lists, Web forums, etc.