What Is Keylogging?

We were excited to see the term “keylogging” mentioned in the mainstream a couple of weeks ago when it was actually featured in an episode of “The Good Wife” on CBS, starring Juliana Margulies. In the TV show, keylogging software was found on her computer as someone was trying to uncover secrets and spying on the TV shows ‘Alicia’.

It’s great that malware like keylogging is mentioned on TV making the public more aware of its existence, still there are many who will do not realize that this threat is very real and very common. What do you really know about keylogging?

Keylogging is actually completely legal software that many businesses use to track their employees computer activities and that parents use on their kids’ computers. The problem is that cybercriminals use keylogging as a tool to break into people’s computers and get their personal information to then commit identity theft or online account fraud.

The term keylogger is neutral and describes how the software functions, namely monitor and log all keystrokes. It doesn’t have to be software; it can also be a device. Many keyloggers hide themselves in the system which makes them fully-fledged Trojans. Keyloggers are now the most-used method in the theft of confidential information.

Cybercriminals will plant keylogging viruses on fake websites or package them in fake downloads and once you access it, it will infect the user’s computer. Once infected, the keylogging virus will start tracking the user’s computer activities and discover confidential information such as passwords, user names, personal information, and more. This information will then be used to access the victim’s bank account to steal funds or to steal the victim’s identity.

A great way to prevent keylogging viruses and something ‘Alicia’ in The Good Wife could have used on her computer is SafeCentral’s WebProtection™.

SafeCentral’s WebProtection™ is a one-time install application that actually assumes that your machine is already infected with malware and ensures that the information on your computer stays secure. WebProtection™ interprets and intercepts over 5,000 discrete Windows commands and effectively blocks all potentially dangerous activities except those processes needed for the transaction. Learn more about how it actually works and how it keeps your information safe at www.SafeCentral.com.