is keylogger a malware?

[hesterl]

hi,
do you think keylogger is a malware?
I mean the keylogger installed in employee’s computer which used to monitor the employee’s working.

Thanks.

[SephStorm]

Its a legal gray area. Is it malware in that case, no its monitoring software. Although there is professional software that is more trustworthy than something you find online, even if it is sold by an online company. Imagine if you downloaded the keylogger and it sent the data not only to you, but to the owners as well?

In the end, this type of monitoring should be rare, only used in extreme cases, after speaking to an attorney.

[Triban]

Agreed with Seph, depending on the country that this is taking place in, it can be a privacy issue and may be against the law. As for weather or not it is technically malware, most AV software will pick up a number of “free” keyloggers as malware. They may not clean/delete them, but will certainly alert the user or admin about it.

Also if you do not have an acceptable use policy in place stating that “computer activity will be monitored and users may be held responsible if they violate policy…” yada yada yada… Then it could come back an bite you in the arse. I know in most European countries, user’s personal privacy is a huge thing and it is against the law to implement such monitoring behaviors without the user’s consent. The US, it is certainly more of a gray area.

[Author]

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