I was talking to my friend and he said that he downloaded a keylogger or something from a site called keylogger.com. I am not exactly sure what a keylogger is, except I heard people use it to obtain passwords or something, is this what it is? Also, can't he get a virus from that site from downloading it or is it safe, and I thought this was illegal?
what is a keylogger? a keylogger is a program or piece of hardware that records keystrokes, often so that they can be sent out to or collected by a 3rd party but sometimes for use by the computer's owner for system monitoring... the fundamental functionality of keylogging is also present in keyboard/mouse playback utilities... in the malware domain keyloggers are generally installed by the user without the user knowing what it will do (therefore qualifying it as a trojan horse program)... this can occur by the user running the keylogger directly, or by running a dropper or downloader trojan that installs the keylogger... keylogger trojans are often used to steal sensitive information like credit card numbers, banking information, even passwords (those designed specifically for passwords are password stealers)... they can also be used for more general electronic surveillance, monitoring email and/or instant message composition, monitoring search terms typed into a search engine (potentially useful for adware), or even monitoring ordinary web-form input for the purpose of identity theft... hardware keyloggers require the attacker to have physical access to your computer or at least some part of your computer involved in keyboard input (like the keboard itself)... hardware keyloggers obviously don't qualify as trojan horse programs (since they aren't programs) but they are often disguised or otherwise obscured to prevent the victim from becoming aware of their presence... What is a Keylogger Trojan? From Mary Landesman, In its simplest form, a keylogger trojan is malicious, surreptitious software that monitors your keystrokes, logging them to a file and sending them off to remote attackers. Some keyloggers are sold as commercial software - the type a parent might use to record their children's online activities or a suspicious spouse might install to keep tabs on their partner. Keyloggers may record all keystrokes, or they may be sophisticated enough to monitor for specific activity - like opening a web browser pointing to your online banking site. When the desired behavior is observed, the keylogger goes into record mode, capturing your login username and password. Some sites attempt to thwart keyloggers by having the user respond to visual cues they must point to with their mouse instead of using their keyboard. However, some keylogger trojans also capture screenshots, thereby negating the effect of this strategy. Keyloggers and other forms of remote-access trojans tend to be the most determined malware, taking extra steps to stealth its presence, including through the use of rootkits. The best defense against keyloggers is prevention. One of the most common infection sources is peer-to-peer (P2P) filesharing networks, such as Kazaa, Morpheus, Gnutella, and dozens of others. Keyloggers are also commonly sent as email attachments and via links in instant messages that point to the infected file. Too often, people are lulled into a false sense of security, believing, for example, that if they simply switch to a different browser they will be safe from harm. It's simply not so simple. To stay safe means becoming proactively engaged in your own security. Here's a good place to start. http://antivirus.about.com/od/securitytips/a/safetytips.htm
So are you saying the site that my friend downloaded the keylogger from was reliable or no? And would it be illegal?
