spyware

[JMortensen]

Nobody has mentioned it yet but switching to Firefox from IE is supposed to help too. IE and Outlook and basically anything Microsoft has vulnerabilities because they can access the entire file structure, which is why they are always targeted. At least that's what my geek friend tells me.

 

He keeps trying to get me to go to Linux. Maybe someday when you can just turn the computer on and it actually works without having to have a PhD in computer science to configure Linux I'll take him up on that.

[pparaska]

I have a paid version of Ad-Aware, as well as Microsoft (nee Giant) Antispyware. I gave up using Spybot and Spywareblaster because they are too slow to update their spyware definitions, etc. I've also used SpyCop

 

I had thought that Microsoft's Antispyware was pretty good, since it found things that Ad-Aware hadn't. Then I was reading PCWorld a few weeks ago and saw that Webroot's SpySweeper won their test. I bought that, for $20 (search, you can find deals!) It found a few things that MS's tool didn't.

 

I think the moral to the story is that you need to re-assess your anti-spyware and anti-virus stuff pretty often and not be afraid to pay for good software. The guys doing the free stuff are saints and everything, but they can't afford to keep up with all the new spyware like the commercial places can.

 

I run McAfee's Anti-virus and Personal Firewall, since Comcast GIVES them to me free. I have a router at home running a stateful firewall with all of the security jacked up on the wireless side (many of my neighbors DON'T!), so the firewall is probably not going to catch anything.

 

I use Firefox almost exclusively. Unfortunately there are some sites, including one of my banks, that demand IE. Firefox 1.5 is very stable and fast. IE is definitely targetted, although Firefox is beginning to get that attention to. It will probably never get to the ridiculous place the IE is though.

 

Mike, the other thing I do is do AUTOMATIC BACKUPs. This talks to the issue of just reformatting the drive and starting over. I have Acronis TrueImage that I make a disk image with and then have it do an incremental every day. That way I can go back to where the hard disk was at any previous time if something DOES happen.

[Here comes trouble]

Mike...line em up... I will donate the ammo. I re-formatted my computer last week and spent the last few days adding lost programs. It got to the point my computer would not shut off without pulling the plug. I use Mozilla Firefox as a browser by the the way itis an improvement over Microshaft. I have not had popups since I cleanesed with Webroot Spy Sweeper (free trial) and reformatted. Zone Alarm apparently does not work with Firedox but it is a relief for awhile to not get pop ups for Viagra combined with speed and diet loss for summer fun and a way to gamble and invest money in a casino. I suspect that a lot of this crap came pre-packed in Microsoft programs with my outdated HP computer since a lot of this appears to be vintage pop ups for spyware programs pimped by Microsoft (or my paranoid imagination) just line em up!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[RB26powered74zcar]

I'm running Firefox and use Zone Alarm.

[DaleMX]

I've run Spybot' date=' Spyware blaster, and a few others and they simply won't remove all traces of the files...

Mike[/quote']

 

Spyware blaster is prevention only, it's not designed to remove anything. My experience with Spybot is that it's a really limited program.

 

What was microsoft thinking when they came up with the idea for the "Registry".

[(goldfish)]

If you're more into the "hands-on" stuff, hijack-this seems to be nice, more for detection of stuff that has happened to your computer. The Casltecops fourm seems to know their stuff and recommend Ediows (sp?) alot. I've not tried it very much so I don't have an opinion.

 

Firefox is becoming more popular and as such, comming into the crosshairs of the people writing these. Just because you don't see pop-ups doesn't mean the stuff isn't on your machine. I've had machines so stuffed that only after running spy-bot, ad aware, and MS, that I started to get pop-ups!

[tannji]

Mostly just echoing people here, but I use a combo of Antvir, Adaware, Spybot, and Hijackthis. Since switching to this setup, I have had no probs, and this is a multi-user machine at times, so I do have something to compare to... = ) Something that might help people when Spybot, Hijackthis, or Ad-aware asks to block something you havent heard of.... Google the name of the process or file. If it is a process, google's first return is a VERY good info site on the processes. Spybot also is a little intrusive at times, constantly asking for blocks or exceptions.... most of the time it is common sense, as you will have just installed something or dowloaded something and the name is logical, but occasionally I run into something that I didnt recognize and needed action one way or the other. Also, as others have said, turn off System Restore.... the bugs like it more than you should. When trying to get rid of something nasty I tend to also re-boot into safe mode first. Once you Identify an infection, look it up on the support forums for the above mentioned programs.... they will typically have a detailed suggested procedure for removal of the really bad ones... look it up before wasting a couple of days trying to to it your way, dont ask me why I suggest that... = )