The purpose of this article is stated right in the title: to easily educate others on what adware really is in five steps. As the Internet has evolved into what it is today, many people think adware as something it is not. For the most part, the media is to blame for that. Whether it is because the media does not truly understand adware or if they just thought the term would attract an audience, adware has entered the mindsets of many with false misconceptions. So, to keep it short and sweet, just remember these five things about adware.

1. Adware was Initially Developed by Advertisers and Advertising Groups

Advertisers, just like all of the other companies and industries of the world, were simply experimenting with a new advertising medium. By allowing new customers to install a program onto their computer, advertisers could send targeted advertisements to attract new audiences. Who would have known the simple idea of adware would become such a great hit.

2. Adware is one of the main reasons why a lot of software is free

Yeah, it's true. From media players, to photo-sharing platforms, to file-trading software, a majority of them are made freely available to you because of adware. In return for providing free downloads, advertisers require the software developers to bundle their adware software in each download. This leads to a win-win-win scenario: the software developers get the appropriate funding they need for their software, the users are able to download the software for free, and advertisers are able to spread their advertising to new platforms and people via pop up technology. 

3. True Adware does not infect your computer like one would expect

This is one of the biggest misconceptions with adware. True adware was never intended to harm or infect anyone's computer. If that was the purpose for designing adware, how would advertisers ever be able to attract new customers? Standard marketing and advertising practices state you shouldn't annoy or irritate possible new customers.

When adware started to infect people's computers, it was no longer adware. At this point, it became either spyware, malware, or a combination of both. Then again, as more advertisers use adware as an advertising medium, we are seeing more malicious modifications so pop-ups and the software itself are difficult to get rid of. Unfortunately, this happens way more than it should. Oh what people will do to get an upper hand...

4. Spyware and Malware can be considered the malicious counterparts of adware

It all started with adware. But, after hackers and malicious software developers discovered the potential of it, they started to make variants of their own.

5. Adware is a growing phenomenon and will continue to evolve and fuel the Internet

Because advertisers are willing to fund software developers and projects will minimal budgets, there is no doubt adware will become more prominent on the Internet. Granted, it is safe to say that adware has irritated most people, but then again, that is where your favorite computer security software and adware removal tools come into play.