Lately, I’ve been feeling like my computer is somehow active or running processes even when I’m not directly using it. Sometimes it seems slower or warmer than usual when I just left it sitting idle. I’ve heard all sorts of rumors that computers secretly do things in the background, but I’m not sure what’s true versus just paranoia.

I came across an article on this site that tries to explain what’s really going on and why people get the feeling their computer is “doing stuff” unnoticed. The article is called “The Hidden Things Your Computer Is ‘Doing’ (Myths, Truths & Why People Feel It’s Real)” and you can find it at https://dtptips.com/the-hidden-things-your-computer-is-doing-myths-truths-why-people-feel-its-real/. It’s pretty interesting but I’m still unclear about which background activities are normal and which might indicate a problem.

Can someone explain what typical background processes happen when a computer is idle? Also, how can I tell if my computer is actually doing something suspicious or if it’s just normal system tasks? Any advice on understanding this would be greatly appreciated!