Adspirit

Adspirit is an invasive application designed to generate unwanted and untrustworthy advertisements on the systems it is installed. Naturally, users are extremely unlikely to download and install such programs willingly. That is why the developers of adware and browser hijackers rely heavily on underhanded distribution tactics, such as software bundles or fake installers. Infosec researchers classify the applications spread through such means as PUPs (Potentially Unwanted Programs).

The advertisements associated with adware are rarely legitimate. It is far more likely that the advertisements will promote shady online gambling platforms, video game portals, adult-oriented pages, etc. They also could cause forced redirects to scam websites, phishing schemes, fake giveaways, and similarly questionable destinations.

Users also should keep in mind that PUPs are often tasked with the collection of browsing and other data from the system. The entire browsing and search histories could be transmitted to a server controlled by the PUP's operators continually. The harvested data may be far more extensive though. Some intrusive applications are capable of obtaining numerous device details (IP address, geolocation, device type, browser type, etc.) and even sensitive details, such as account credentials, banking details, and payment data from the autofill information saved into the user's browsers.