Do you think your husband or wife is cheating? Are you tempted to install a program on their computer to “catch” them? Or have you already installed one of the many spyware or snoopware programs that are available?
Snoopware is to a point that even the most accomplished computer user might not know their activities are being monitored. This is good news for a suspicious spouse, and bad news for a cheating spouse.
Is snooping getting out of hand?
One of the programs I’ve checked out, due to the massive emails I’ve received about it, makes me think this whole thing has gone way too far. For less than $100 anyone can spy on anyone simply by sending them an electronic greeting card or an email attachment. It’s that simple.
If you suspect your spouse of cybercheating or of email/chat contact with their real time lover, you can send them an electronic greeting card. When they open and view the card, a snoopware program is installed on their computer. The program then sends you email reports of everything they do on the computer: chat, emails, website visits, etc.
Because of the way this program installs itself, and the way it runs in stealth mode, it appears there isn’t an easy way to find it once it is installed. Good for you if you’re the suspicious spouse, bad for you if you’re the cheating spouse.
Sounds like the perfect spy, doesn’t it?
Think of all those fun electronic cards you’re received from friends and family, the birthday cards, “thinking of you” cards, silly cards. Any one of them could have installed the snoopware on your computer. All of your activities could be under surviellance right now. And you wouldn’t have a clue.
While you’re monitoring your spouse, he or she could be monitoring you. For all you know, the “other woman” or “other man” could be watching. Wouldn’t that be a kick? Of course, you can do the same their way, however, whoever installs the program on the other’s computer first has the advantage. They can watch that person’s activities — including when they send snoopware to someone or view the snoopware reports they receive.
This particular snoopware can be installed one of three ways: as an electronic greeting card, as an attachment that can be renamed and sent to anyone who trusts you enough to open an attachment you send to them, or as a file that can be installed via floppy disk.
Have you clicked on any attachments from friends, family members, or strangers, that didn’t work and then had a DLL error message pop up? It only happens once but that’s enough to install the snoopware. Works both ways of course.
If you’re like me, you get more spam and virus emails than legitimate emails. Because I’ve had way too much experience with viruses over the years I don’t open attachments and I don’t click on links in emails from strangers. Isn’t it a shame that you may now have to be concerned about email you receive from family and friends, even coworkers?
The new technology raises the paranoia levels straight to the sky, doesn’t it? Maybe your boss is spying. Maybe your daughter, your son, your neighbor, your best friend. Or perhaps you have decided to spy on one of them.
I’ve received literally thousands of spam emails advertising this particular snoopware in the past couple of weeks. They don’t all point to the same URL but they are the same company and the emails are configured to appear to be from “affiliates” as the company says it offers an affiliate program although there are no available details so that may be a smokescreen.
Visiting any of the sites could be hazardous. There is at least one link on the site that triggers a Visual Basic script which may immediately install the program on the visitor’s computer. Think about what that could mean to your personal privacy and security. I’m not aware of any way to actually find this program once it has been installed as it backdates its files and operates in stealth mode.
Another feature of the program once it is installed in the computer you want to spy on is a Web interface that allows you to log in and then access that person’s computer. If you can, so can the program’s developers.
Because active links to this program are closing and then opening under new URLs your access may be very limited as well as your ability to remove the program from the other computer should you wish.
There are too many negatives of snoopware programs such as these to make their “benefits” worthwhile. That’s my opinion, of course. You may feel the advantages outweigh the risks.
Before you email me with questions as to how you can find this particular snoopware, stop and think whether you really need to resort to this type of spying. It is invasive. It is probably illegal. And if you have suspicions strong enough to believe you are justified using snoopware, maybe you need to follow your instincts and make some hard decisions about your situation.
If you do decide to use snoopware, make sure you can handle what you may find. It is one thing to suspect your spouse is cheating and quite another to have absolute proof that requires you actually do something when you may not be ready act.
Think of it another way: how would you feel if someone used snoopware on you? Would you ever forgive them?
© Pat Gaudette. All rights reserved.
Order Pat’s books from Amazon.com: How to Survive Your Husband’s Midlife Crisis: Strategies and Stories from the Midlife Wives Club and Midnight Confessions: True Stories of Adultery.