Encountering the Wild PUP

October 16, 2014 | BY Adam Kujawa
 
The Internet is full of dangers; threats like malware, phishing attacks, hackers and drive-by exploits are some of the most commonly mentioned.
But did you know that there is a far more common threat to users that no one in the media seems to talk about, a threat that almost everyone who has ever owned a computer has experienced.
These threats are known as Potentially Unwanted Programs and they are the day-walking vampires of the internet.
 
What is a Potentially Unwanted Program?A Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP) is software that is not inherently malicious but often utilizes high amounts of system resources and is a common cause of user headaches, spam e-mails and slow systems. PUPs are not usually malicious in design and therefore have avoided being classified as malware.
 
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