What is Spyware? Is it related to Hardware?

Well, no, Hardware is the physical parts of your computer while Spyware is a fairly new term that refers to software that gathers and then sends information about your Web surfing habits to its own Web site. It is often installed in your computer in combination with a free download that you selected from the Web, but it is occasionally installed just by visiting a Web site. Just as there are many types of computer viruses, Spyware is actually a broad category of malicious software, and known now as Malware, intended to intercept or take partial control of a computer's operation without the user's informed consent.

Spyware transmits information in the background, without announcing itself, as you move around on the Web. Because of this