What are Keyloggers?

Keyloggers are a form of tools that record whatever a person types on his device. They are generally used for legitimate purposes, but sometimes they are used by malicious attackers for illicit purposes. When an attacker performs a keylogger attack, the keylogger software records each keystroke on the target’s device and transmits it to the malicious attacker. 

We interact with a device primarily through the keyboard. This is what the keyloggers take advantage of. Keyloggers can record a lot of information about your activities and can track your credit card information that you enter, websites you visit and passwords you use.

Ethical Use of Keyloggers

 Keyloggers are not always used for illicit purposes, they can be used for legitimate intentions such as:

• Many companies use keylogger software as a part of employee monitoring software to track employee productivity. 
• Parents may use a keylogger to monitor a child’s gadget usage and screen time.
• Information Technology departments use keylogger software to troubleshoot issues on a device.

Unethical Use of Keyloggers

As discussed above, keyloggers can be used for legitimate purposes, but most often they become an excellent tool for the hackers to steal information, monitor activities and commit cybercrimes.

• Keyloggers are used to track every keystroke entered and save the data in a file. This file is automatically accessed by the hacker and thus, can be misused. 
• Some keyloggers can capture full screen at random intervals and act as screen recorders. This way, malicious attackers can access your company’s network and steal confidential information.
• Malicious users can log into your email accounts and steal information or scam your contacts.
• Hackers often steal credit card details and make unauthorized transactions. They can even log into your bank accounts and attempt unauthorized money transfers.

Types of Keyloggers

There are two types of keyloggers namely- Hardware Keyloggers and Software Keyloggers. They differ in a way that they log into a keystroke. Both of these can be used for malicious purposes which includes credential theft and identity theft.

• Hardware Keyloggers- These are physical devices that record every keystroke. Malicious attackers can impersonate them in the computer cabling or in a USB adapter. This makes it hard for the victim to detect it. Generally, this type of keyloggers are not used in cyberattacks as it requires physical access to the device to install a hardware keylogger.
• Software Keyloggers- These types of keyloggers don’t have physical access to a device, instead users download software keyloggers onto the device. A user may download a software keylogger with his knowledge or inadvertently along with malware in it.

 Software keyloggers are generally used for cyberattacks and include different varieties of it. Some of the common types are discussed below:

• API Keyloggers use application programming interfaces running inside of applications to record every keystroke. They can record an event whenever you press a key within the application.
• Form-grabbing Keyloggers are used to record the data entered into a field. This type of software is deployed on a website instead of downloading it on a victim’s computer. An attacker may use form-grabbing keyloggers on malicious websites that prompts victims to enter their credentials.
• JavaScript Keyloggers are written in JavaScript code and injected into websites. This type of software can run scripts to record every keystroke entered by website visitors.

How Does a Keylogger Function?

Keyloggers can be distributed in a variety of ways, though all of them have the same purpose. They record information entered on a device and report the information entered to the hacker. Here, we have discussed some of the ways by which keyloggers can be spread:

• Phishing- This is a common technique used by malicious attackers. Hackers make use of phishing emails, containing fraudulent messages designed to look legitimate. When you click an infected link or open a malicious attachment, the keylogger gets downloaded on your device.
• Web page scripts- Hackers can inject malicious code on a web page. When you click an infected link or visit a malicious website, the keylogger gets downloaded on your device automatically.
• Social engineering- Phishing is a type of social engineering, in which hackers tend to trick victims into providing their confidential information. They pretend to be a trusted contact to convince the recipient to open an attachment and download malware.
• Unknown software downloaded from the internet- Malicious attackers can embed keyloggers in software downloaded from the internet. As you download the software, you unknowingly download keylogging software.

Are Keyloggers Really Harmful?

Keyloggers have a reputation of criminality, but there are safe and legal uses for keyloggers. As per varying laws and regulations from country to country, keyloggers are generally considered legal if you own the device. Such that, you can monitor your office computers if you own the business. However, you may not be able to monitor a family member’s computer without his or her consent. 

Keyloggers are considered as safe and legal when used in ethical hacking. Ethical hacking is a technique through which a hacker attempts to legally break into computers or networks. This technique is used to test the cyber security of their company.

How Can You Protect Yourself from Keyloggers?

As evidenced, malicious attackers can use keyloggers to access your personal information and can cause a lot of damage. Hence, it is important to protect yourself from the threat of keyloggers. You can eventually reduce the likelihood of an attack with behaviors and precautions. You must be aware of the dangers, thus, you can bolster your cyber security and better protect yourself against keylogging threats.

The best way you can protect yourself against keylogging threats is to educate about how the attacks are caused. You can take the following precautions to avoid of being a victim:

1. Verify the emails to be legitimate- Keep a check on unusual email addresses and verify whether the messages are legitimate. For insight, if you receive a message from your bank to reset your password, and you are in a doubt, avoid clicking on the link. For instance, you can directly reset your password from your bank’s portal.
2. Use a unique and strong password for your accounts- Keep your accounts protected with strong and unique passwords so that malicious attackers cannot get access to all your accounts if a password is compromised.
3. Verify the websites you visit- Hackers create phishing versions of popular websites to trick the users. In such a case, before entering your personal information, check that the website has a digital certificate to validate its security.

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