After nearly two years in beta testing, Microsoft has at long last released the final version of Windows Defender, its free anti-spyware software. The tool is available now for Windows XP, and will ship as part of Windows Vista.

ITBackbones has a story about a new spyware that instead of keeping your system guarded against spywares, the program itself works as a Spyware and Adware, triggering pop-up ads and tampering with system components, seriously compromising the security of your computer in the process.

The number of high-profile occurrences of data breaches this year should serve as a warning to small businesses about the damage that occurs when a data security leak happens not just to your business transactions, but also to your reputation.

One of the most imposing risks for small businesses come from spyware and its supposedly less harmful cousin, adware. These discreet applications are overwhelming networks everywhere and stealing sensitive, personal information, while enabling identity theft and tracking online information.

Spybot - Search &Destroy detects and removes spyware, a relatively new kind of threat not yet covered by common anti-virus applications. Spyware silently tracks your surfing behaviour to create a marketing profile for you that is transmitted without your knowledge to the compilers and sold to advertising companies. If you see new toolbars in your Internet Explorer that you haven't intentionally installed, if your browser crashes inexplicably, or if your home page has been "hijacked" (or changed without your knowledge), your computer is most probably infected with spyware. Even if you don't see the symptoms, your computer may be infected, because more and more spyware is emerging. Spybot-S&D is free, so there's no harm giving it a try to see if something has invaded your computer.