What is often bundled with free software and displays targeted pop-up advertisements?

Adware is a type of software that is typically bundled with free applications and is designed to display targeted advertisements to users. When users install a program that includes adware, they may start to see pop-up advertisements or other types of marketing content tailored to their interests based on their browsing behavior. This form of advertising can be intrusive and may slow down system performance, but it primarily aims to generate revenue for the software developers through the advertisements.

Many users are drawn to free software, but they may not be aware that these applications often come with additional software, such as adware. This creates a trade-off where users receive a free service at the cost of exposing themselves to advertisements. Adware can also track user activity to serve more personalized ads, which highlights its role in the digital advertising ecosystem.

On the other hand, other types of malware serve different purposes—for instance, ransomware encrypts a user's files and demands payment for the decryption key, while spyware secretly gathers information from a user's computer without consent. A logic bomb is a piece of code that executes under certain conditions but does not relate to advertisements or free software. Thus, the association of adware with free software and pop-up advertisements makes it the correct answer in this context.