Yu, a Stanford University student, recently found that one of his family's computers was infected with a program called "BrowserAid/Featured Results," which was delivering additional and unwanted pop-up ads atop Google results. He managed to rid the computer of that application, but a similar, unidentifiable program could not be eliminated.
"I removed it from the registry, but this one heals itself," Yu said. Spyware makers, he said, are getting more sophisticated.
And that's a problem for Google, as new strains of spyware attempt to profit from the highly popular search engine and its lucrative pay-per-click advertising program by altering search results pages or delivering pop-up windows with their own lists of text ads.
Spyware is a catchall term for software that installs itself on a PC without consumers' knowledge and that tracks computer usage, sometimes with criminal intent. A related breed of software, adware, is designed for less invasive, but more annoying, delivery of advertisements.
An entire industry of spyware and adware has sprouted up to take advantage of search engine ads, which are the most lucrative and fast-growing sector of online advertising. Sales from search advertising are expected to reach about $3.2bn this year, up from $2.5bn last year and just less than $1bn in 2002, according to research firm eMarketer. Google alone is expected to rake in more than $1bn from advertising this year.
The problem shows no signs of abating. A recent survey reported that nearly one out of every three computers scanned for Trojan horse programs or monitoring software like spyware was infected, according to security software maker Webroot Software. For some in the US Congress, the threat is serious enough to warrant legislation designed to protect consumers.
