Keyloggers are spyware or even entire devices that record keystrokes. Keylogger software and tools are dangerous. Most often they read login details, such as names and passwords, and then send them to unauthorized persons. This is a huge danger for our data, which are to be protected by authorization, e.g. by means of a login and password. E-mail accounts, social profiles, online banking, access to company systems – each of these elements is at risk if authorization data falls into the wrong hands.
- Antivirus applications available for PCs and laptops
- Applications protecting mobile devices with Android and iOS
Keylogger for statistics
Keylogger is spyware. This name may refer to various types of malware that transmits information about users. Click recorders, keyloggers, look for a specific action the user will perform, i.e. pressing keys. Keyloggers can also operate in accordance with the law, e.g. check the behavior of users on the computers they use, are used for scientific and statistical purposes. As in many cases of this type, whether a keylogger threatens security or helps with anything will decide what it will be used for.
Keylogger working method
Keylogger software or tools are programs that run as background processes. They record user actions, they can even take screenshots of the text entered on the screen. They record all data in the form of local logs in files on a computer or send them online in real time. The most effective protection against keyloggers, as against most malicious and malicious software, is to use good antivirus programs.
This type of software can come in many variations, as well as their hardware counterparts. Starting of:
- malware that simply reads the keyboard buttons pressed,
- interfering with the operating system and obtaining root accounts,
- as activity monitors on websites (e.g. in login forms).
In the case of hardware keyloggers, we can distinguish tools here:
- being a physically separate keyboard (e.g. keyloggers placed on ATM keyboards),
- intercept devices operating between the keyboard and the computer (e.g. intercepting the signal from the cable),
- acoustic, reading sounds made by the keyboard,
- the so-called. sniffers, intercepting the wireless signal,
- other.
How to protect yourself from keyloggers?
You can block most of the abovementioned types of keyloggers by using anti-virus software that is constantly updated and checks all possible suspicious activities in the background and other tools that may have the characteristics of keylogging. However, as it happens with the virus and malware database, this one is changing very dynamically, so it may take a while for the selected software to identify a new spyware.
- Take care to update your antivirus software. The use of both proven anti-virus programs and those that update virus databases in real time to protect you and your data from keyloggers will help you in this. Most of this type of malware is immediately detected by virtually all antivirus programs on the market, but the time and frequency of their update is also important.
- Use the password manager that will allow you to effectively control all your login details, help generate a strong password, allow you to enter data using the internal auto-complete function. Please note that keyloggers rely on the interception of data entered from the keyboard,
- Use multi-factor authentication, which is considered one of the safer solutions for your login credentials. In addition to entering your login and password, you will also be asked to enter an additional access key, e.g. fingerprint or code entered in a separate application. Even if keyloggers break the actual password, it is useless only thanks to MFA.
- If you use devices in which authorization data are entered, e.g. payment terminals, ATMs but also authorization tools, access code keyboards, etc., it is worth taking a closer look at them. Do they look suspicious, do they look like someone was tampering with them, or are the number of connections and connectors suspiciously too large for such a simple construction,
- An invaluable protection tool is the use of a virtual on-screen keyboard, which, for example, on your computer will be operated with the mouse cursor or touchpad. You can access it in Windows by pressing the Windows key + R and by typing „osk.exe” or by using the Search> On-screen keyboard option,
- if you use public computers often, be very cautious. It is difficult to determine what software is already installed on your computer and whether the device does not have a hardware keylogger. This is where the on-screen keyboard will be useful or checking whether the device is running the latest antivirus program and whether it is turned on.
Protect yourself with anti-keylogger
There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent keylogger than to use anti-virus software. Check out the wide range of software that protects and optimizes the operation of your computer. Do not wait, add the service to your account at home.pl today or use the help of our specialists to choose the best product suited to your needs.
