My H is VERY tech savvy...if I download some kind of keylogger on his laptop, will he find it? I have access to it every once in awhile (any time I ask, but also in the evening after he goes to bed), but I want to SEE what he is doing. I'm just worried that he'll see it. I know that he runs a lot of system maintenance on it. He maintains the server at his office. He knows computers inside and out.

How do I hide it on there?

I would suggest eblaster, which will email you the reports so you don't have to continually access his computer. eblaster is invisible and I am not aware of any programs that detect it. You can download it on your computer [you have to buy it] and copy it to disk and then install it on his computer. Its real easy to install.

Short answer is that you probably don't. Tech savvy users typically have programs the purpose of which is to discover spyware of every type imaginable, not just key loggers.

Here is what Wiki says:

"Anti-spyware
Anti-spyware applications are able to detect many keyloggers and cleanse them. Responsible vendors of monitoring software support detection by anti-spyware programs, thus preventing abuse of the softwares."

By law and contract, most anti-spyware will not detect law enforcement programs, but you can't buy them to the best of my knowledge.

Sorry, maybe someone knows of a program that does solve the problem.

Larry

Hmmm Ok Mel.

I called eBlaster and another vendor. Neither would claim to be undetectable in the event that remote email support was used - too hard to do. Both claimed to be undetectable from current spyware detectors that "they had tested," which in the case of eBlaster was "Over 50." And both said if they discovered one that did detect them, they would put out a program update.

They both cost $99.95, which is hunk of change.

I am still not sure. But on the other hand, I am not willing to spend $99.95 to vet undetectability against the suite of spyware stuff I use here in my daily work. One of them, in point of fact, brags about being able to detect key loggers (a squared free version). Neither of the people I talked to knew what a squared was - so there you go.

Larry

I agree with Larry on this. Chances are, if he is a power user like you describe, then it probably won't work. I'm not sure what your situation is, but there is a good chance that if you attempt an install he will discover it, which might possibly undermine trust between you or blow your cover. Your question implies that you are not too comp savvy, so you should be very careful. Its especially more difficult with an active email program, as that uses more system resources and creates IP traffic.

Sorry not trying to be discouraging, just trying to help you see things clearly.

Not sure what you are talking about here?! The truth is there are no spyware programs that exist which cannot be discovered somehow by an expert user. Although I'm sure that laws may exist (somewhere, although I've never heard of this) whereby detection of "law-enforcement" programs is not allowed, the Internet is a global network that transcends all political boundaries. Such laws would only affect commercial retail applications sold by companies located in the relevant country.

Even is she could get her hands on a "law enforcement" spy program, as an unskilled user, chances are she could not get it installed & configured properly without her H finding out or becoming suspicious, just IMHO.

Ok, now I might just be going off on a tangent here, so please bare with me. If hicktownmommy's H is really good he may already be covertly monitoring her computer/online activities, so its possible he may already know of her intentions! Of course, I'm not familiar with her background or situation, so I'm merely conjecturing on possibilities.

So far, I know of no spyware detector that has caught eblaster or spectorpro and I know of TWO that are on workplace systems with pretty high tech software. I found out about these keyloggers from a client of Steve Harley, who recommends spectorpro. It has been well worth the money to several board members here.

Another thing to point out is that it is always possible, and recommended, to run the spyware and anti-virus AFTER installation to see if it is detected. If detected, you simply program the anti-v/spyware to IGNORE it.

The worst thing that can happen is the anti-v catches it and deletes it. That is no big deal. So far I know of no cases where that has happened.

I disagree, the worst case scenerio is her H discovers her attempt to install a surveillance program and/or discovers it running. It really depends on his level of expertise. Its possible although maybe improbable.

And being a laptop eliminates the potential for a hardware-based keylogger.

I disagree. I don't view that nearly as problematic as losing the software. If my H found the software, it would be no great loss. If it were deleted, it would be a loss of $100. I view the latter as the worst case.

Tech savvy means that the Anti Malware software provides a report of what it has done, or more likely, a system alert of what it has discovered and then asks for direction from the owner.

I know of a forum where I can go ask some questions and will so do - but it may be a few days before I get a consensus.

Larry

Ah, if it does not matter if he discovers it, then go for it. I thought it was about him not being alerted to her snooping. As well as undermining trust/recovery. Software is easily copied so the risk of deletion is no biggie.

Hey Larry, I have no doubt it can be detected by some systems, that is not in dispute. But there is RISK in every thing. NOTHING in this world is RISK FREE. More often it is a GREATER risk to NOT know what is going on when one is being destroyed behind his back. I would rather risk being caught with keylogger than have my H conceal an affair from me. There is risk in EVERYTHING.

Just know that this is the keylogger most used in my circles, the one recommended by Steve Harley, and is far and away the hardest to detect on the market, THUS FAR. In fact, I know of NO ONE who has ever been detected.

There is risk in everything and I think folks know that. One just has to be willing to take the risk. Even if it was detected, it is not the end of the world. For me, I would gladly take the risk.

A keylogger wouldn't undermine trust, rather it RESTORES trust and greatly enhances recovery. That is how I regained trust in my H again. Being able to independently verify a WS' faithfulness is a great boon to rebuilding trust. Its an excellent tool all the way around.

Well Mel, it is that I have made a living helping people with their computers. Part of the problem here is that many active programs, including the most popular, will log registry entries as part of the process of any computer program installation. And it is my observation that the average user is not capable of slithering around the problems of key logger install on a power user's laptop having only a limited amount of time to so do.

It takes a high level of computer literacy to install something without detection from the likes of, for example, SpyBot, Search and Destroy, which alerts the user during installation (and after) for any program being installed. The detection process is part of the monitering process. spyBot may or may not be able to detect something already there, but it will know if something changes the registry. eBlaster is a root program, meaning that it modifies the root process of the computer. And it does leave not so obvious parts of itself in the registry, which means it has to modify the registry when it is installed, or so I have been led to believe.

Another tool I use is TreeSize. It will tell you when files are growing, such as a key logger file.

If somebody gave me a list of all the software on his laptop, I could probably do what was needed to install an undetectable version of eBlaster (for example) if I had an hour not interrupted by the owner. Someone might be able to walk the lady through it over the phone IF she had the time.

Larry

My guess is that H would find it IF I could even figure out how to install it correctly. He is MY tech support. He was a Mac Service Technician for 10+ years, has built and supported servers for years, and designs and installs computer systems. Anyone that we know calls him to talk them through their computer problems.

I may just need to use other channels to rebuild the trust. We are in the recovery phase (I think) so I wouldn't be blowing cover. My whole story is on Recovery Between Work, School, and Soccer if you want to see it. I was mainly interested in the logistics of using spyware with a tech master.