Keyloggers & Computer Monitoring Software

The main question I get asked about keyloggers and computer monitoring software is: what's the difference? Well, there's a thin line, but mostly they are the same. The term 'computer monitoring software' is more fitting these days, as keyloggers came about in the days when all you could on a computer was type, hence logging keystrokes was the only thing necessary when monitoring a computer. Of course, these days we can do a lot more on these amazing machines, and so keyloggers have generally evolved into computer monitoring software.

To get a full picture of what activities have taken place on a computer, these applications need to monitor a lot of aspects of digital life. Some people want to monitor Facebook, some want to check printed documents; the computer monitoring software of today can do all of this, and can also do it very stealthily. Stealth is one of the main priorities for these applications, so that the person using the computer doesn't know they're being monitoring. Because of this, you'll see no trace of the software while it's running. It'll be likes it's not there.

You'll usually bring the software out of hidden mode using a combination of keys (something like control+shift+Q), and a password that you set when installing the monitoring application. Once you enter both of these you'll presented with the user interface, in which you'll be able to look through the logs of what's been happening. These (usually well organised) logs, will show you:

Any website visited.

Any application used.

Any document edited.

Any file or folder opened.

Anything printed.

Anything copied to the clipboard.

And more...

The software will usually also take screenshots whenever any of the above happens, so you'll be able to get a visual idea of what's going on. The monitoring software will also usually record all the above with dates and times, so you'll also know when the said activity happened.

If you're looking for extra features, a lot of programs will provide. Most will have a function to send you the reports via email, so that you can look at them somewhere away from the monitored computer. Some applications also provide things like web cam and microphone monitoring, making these programs very powerful indeed. They're also usually very easy to use, so you don't have to be computer whiz kid to make them work for you. It's a simple case of install, run and leave.

Gecko Monitor is a computer monitoring application that has a free two hour trial. You can find out more from the gecko computer monitoring software website here