Adware is a category of malicious programs that are created in order to display advertisements, usually in the form of popups, on infected computers. These programs are usually innocuous, not causing any specific type of damage, but they are still nuisances to most computer users. If your computer is infected with adware, the good news is that there are ways to get rid of this annoyance, though it can be difficult since adware tends to come back or reinstall itself.

First, you should invest in a good quality adware remover. In fact, you should get a program that also scans for spyware since this should cover you in terms of adware as well. This should be used in addition to your anti-virus program, which is also an essential tool for the modern computer user. A spyware/adware remover will scan your system and list any potential adware programs that are found on your computer. Most programs will give you recommended actions and more information about each item they find. That way, you can do some quick research via the program or on the web to find out if what the scanner finds is something really harmful or just a false alarm. Yes, false alarms do happen, so don't worry if you see a lot of items show up in the list once you run the scan...at least not at first. Just take each item one by one and determine if it's really a problem.

There are free and paid programs available. Some companies allow you to download a free trial or do a free scan via the web. That way, you don't have to invest in a program that you may not need and can still scan your computer. Of course, if you find something, you'll have to pay for the full program but the good thing is, these programs are very affordable and usually come with free updates as new threats are found and added to the database.

If you're being barraged with popup ads, especially if it's happening even when you're not online, it's time to run a scan for adware and clean up your system. In addition, take a few minutes to educate yourself on the growing threat of adware, spyware and other internet dangers to your computer. As an informed user, you're one step ahead of most and will be able to avoid most of these problems in the future.