LIVE from Threat Center: Resources : Anti-Spyware Whitepaper Gateway Anti-spyware Training Guide Network ThreatPak Datasheet Gateway Anti-Spyware Datasheet Spyware Presentation

Spyware (and Adware) is one of the most misunderstood of the new generation of application-layer threats because there is not a clear consensus on what defines a threat (or more appropriately, what the difference is between 'annoying' Adware and a true threat). There are three general classes of Spyware:

• Harmless-but-annoying
• Information-collecting
• Malicious

The common thread between all of these is that the user did not choose to have the software running on their system.    

Spyware is difficult to stop because it requires so many technologies to detect and prevent the exploit. Spyware authors have financial incentives in finding ways to get their software on your system. A robust Spyware prevention architecture will consist of both client/server and gateway-based elements.  At the gateway your Anti-Spyware solution should combine signature matching, intrusion prevention and web filtering techniques to detect and prevent Spyware from infecting the network, whether delivered by web, email or other delivery mechanisms such as malicious ActiveX or Java Applets.  Infected computers on the internal network are also detected and blocked from sending private data to Internet collection sites. Proactive security at the gateway stops new Spyware infections, prevents confidential data from leaving the network and eliminates resource drains that result from reactive measures of constantly scanning and cleaning each computer on the network.  Desktop Anti-Spyware removes all traces of Spyware from infected computers. Desktop protection should also proactively protect clients from internal threats such as Disk, CD or USB and prevents Spyware infections on laptops that leave the corporate network.

Anti-Spyware Security Checklist: