This is really simple – anybody can do it, and it’s pretty reliable.
- Don’t browse porn sites.
- Don’t run executables from unknown sites (usually porn sites).
You’ll find most spyware (and to a less extent, viruses) people end up with on their computers, come from porn sites. The ‘average user’ doesn’t tend to go browsing download sites and downloading massive amounts of files, such as shareware utilities and the like, so the common ‘attack vector’ (to use a security term) is through the web browser. I don’t think you could even blame any particular browsers, as these installers are usually executables that have to be downloaded and run.
So how can you spot them? Well, you’ll often find sites advertising free porn, or in some cases, porn you can pay for via your phoneline. To get to the porn, they’ll make you download a small program (a dialler) to run. This will usually install itself and allow access to something, but at the same time go and download a load of other junk and install it in the background. Before long, the PC is riddled with rubbish, and you’re barely able to use it.
So there you go! Simple stuff really!