What Is a Keylogger and How to Protect Yourself | Total Security Software

Sameeratakhtani
2 min readJan 11, 2021

If you suspect someone may have obtained your personal information (as long as it’s not your girlfriend or boyfriend trying to find out your Facebook password), chances are you’re a victim of a keylogger or malware rootkit.

While it’s perfectly legal when used for a benign purpose — like monitoring your children’s online activity to protect them — keylogging can also be used for malicious purposes — like stealing your credit card details or logging into your Gmail account.

If you are here because you are looking for a good antivirus to protect yourself against keylogging, then we assume you already know all about how they work.

What is a keylogger?

A keylogger is a form of spyware that monitors activity by recording keystrokes without your knowledge so that hackers can access personal information, such as login credentials, banking, and credit card information, passwords, and more.

The keylogging software is usually installed on your computer through an involuntary download, someone could install a physically on your PC without you knowing or through more sinister methods such as phishing attacks.

How to delete a keylogger

Eliminating keyloggers can be difficult because they are designed to stay hidden. They usually hide in files you download or links you click on.

While they can be identified by signs like “slow” keyboards, slow navigation, and error screens when loading graphics (when you know what to look for), wasting time looking for them manually isn’t very practical.

Fortunately, since keyloggers can be detected by definitions, the best defense against this type of snooping is to install an antivirus.

How does the protection of an antivirus against a keylogger work?

Modern antiviruses work by combining definition-based detection methods and behavioral techniques for complete protection against keyloggers and other types of malware rootkits.

They constantly scan the computer, taking appropriate countermeasures when they find traces of keyloggers or other malicious programs. If you want to prevent hackers from stealing your private information, you need to install a reputable antivirus.

While it is possible to manually remove threats from your computer, it is a significant waste of time. Using a good antivirus is a much more effective approach.

If you know your computer enough to distinguish what is normal and what is dangerous, then you may feel safe enough from keyloggers, as long as you check often enough to catch them in time.

For those who don’t or those who don’t have time to always check everything, total security software is an easy and convenient way to keep your PC safe from keyloggers.

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