Free Anti Spyware

[StickMan]

Can anyone tell me what programs are good for free Anti Spyware? I just finished my free 30 days of Norton and need a new spyware program. I'm using AVG for my Anti Virus so I have that one covered. I forget what I used on my old com for Anti Spyware so any help would be nice.

Thanks,
Stickman

[Lucky]

I just finished my free 30 days of Norton...

Oh god it's worse that we thought! Someone get this man an anti-virus!

Rawhide will help you, he knows what he's talking about in regards to this type of thing.

[Catch]

Adaware, by Lavasoft. It's efficient and sensitive, has a small CPU footprint, and it's free.

Props for using AVG, too. Norton and McAfee aren't the best anti-virus software providers, just the best advertised.

[SDF]

Read this this and this

[StickMan]

Oh god it's worse that we thought! Someone get this man an anti-virus!

Rawhide will help you, he knows what he's talking about in regards to this type of thing.

No no I have Anti Virus, AVG is a very good Anti Virus is free and is even seen as better than most of the big name Anti Virus programs. I found this out when I was doing a report on Viruses and spyware and what not that I remember that part as it was the program I had at the time if I could find that paper and the source site I would be able to look up the list I had that Had a good Anti Spyware

Long story short I need Anti Spyware not anti Virus!!

[Ego Slayer]

Spybot.
Housecall.

[Rawhide]

Free virus scanner I recommend:
www.avast.com

Free online virus scanner I recommend you use every once in a while:
housecall.trendmicro.com

Free anti-spyware programs, I recommend you use both. Spybot is the most important though.
www.safer-networking.org
www.adaware.com

Free Firewall:
www.zonealarm.com

[SurlySeraph]

Spybot.
Housecall.

I second Spybot. It's what I use.

[MountainKing]

Speaking as someone who's done tech support/Internet help desk for the last four years, I have to say that Rawhide pretty much covered all of it. I personally don't care for ZoneAlarm because it has a tendency to get persnickety now and again (though nowhere near that Godawful Norton). Here in the office, we use AVG, AdAware, and Spybot: Search and Destroy exclusively, and then we recommend using the Mozilla Firefox browser instead of IE (and we insist that nobody installs IE 7; I've never seen a browser screw up printer settings in a computer before, and it was terrible).

I left my laptop unscanned for a good four months with Firefox, AdAware, and Spybot on it, and then finally decided to get around to putting AVG on and only came up with two viruses, so, those programs are pretty much my standby.

[Rawhide]

I don't care much for ZoneAlarm much myself anymore. But can you recommend a better free solution?

[MountainKing]

Not really, because I've never actually had much need for an extra firewall. I do my share of surfing at random, and I probably put my computer at as much risk of infection if not more, but... With AVG set to run every night, weekly AdAware/Spybot runs, a well set up router, and Firefox, I've never had any actual *problem* problems; the worst it gets is if I forget to run AdAware/Spybot for a week or two. That doesn't help much, but so far it hasn't failed me

[mudbunny]

Personally, I use the windows firewall.

However, I also have a router with NAT going on, as well as Spybot and AVG running.

This thread here in the Spybot S&D forums is a nice place to start if you are figuring out how to fully protect your computer.

[Zherog]

AdAware and Spybot are mentioned. I'll toss one more into the ring:

SpySweeper, from Webroot. The product itself is a pay product (and, in my opinion, it's worth every penny^*). However, on their page they have a link for a free scan.

* My wife's PC has always been notoriously infected with all sorts of crap, because she regularly downloads web games to play. Ever since we've installed SpySweeper (which includes tools that block the crap before it even gets on your machine), her PC has been clean - even when double checking it with other programs such as AdAware.

[valadil]

I'll cast another vote for adaware plus spybot. Even if you don't scan all the time, spybot's preemptive immunize feature is wonderful.

As an aside, whenever I set up a new windows installation I download new copies of each of those, plus symantec (if you dig around on their site you can get updates as executable files), firefox, as well as drivers (I have a bad habit of using nics that don't have their drivers included in windows). All this gets burnt to a CD. I install all the software from the cd before even thinking about plugging in the ethernet cable on the new installation.

[MountainKing]

I find it difficult to comprehend that there's a NIC card that WinXP can't support at *all*... have you tried making a copy of your I386 folder on your PC and then letting Windows search the hard drive for drivers? That's typically what works with reinstallations of Windows or new hardware, unless you're using really, really old hardware.

[Eldpollard]

AVG does anti spyware as well as anti virus. There's a link on their page for the spyware program.

[MountainKing]

Yes, but to get it, you have to pay for it, and that kind of defeats the purpose of the idea of getting quality spyware removal for free.

[purple gelatinous cube o' Doom]

I've been very unimpressed with Adware in the past. I've had to run in at least 4 or 5 times to get everything, since it really never seems to do a good job of finding everything at once. come to think of it, I've never really found a free anti spyware program that has done the job 100%

[MountainKing]

If you wanted software perfection, you'd have to be running Unix If it's Windows, well, you're kind of stuck relying on software synergy to get the job done; it's why I run both Spybot AND AdAware. Run Spybot first; anything AdAware would have missed, Spybot will get. Then run AdAware; anything Spybot missed, AdAware will get. Then, let AVG run every night whilst you sleep happy sleeps, and your computer will be fine.

[Penguinizer]

What the heck do you people have against Norton. Although, running both Norton and Zone Alarm can be funny at times. It blocked nigh everything. I couldn't play Counterstrike or any other online game since it got blocked and the whole computer froze. Some tinkering stopped this though.

[MountainKing]

In the last four years of working tech support, no single piece of software has caused more problems on user PCs than Norton Anti-Virus.

I'll repeat that.

No single piece of software, in my last four years of working tech support, has caused more problems on user PCs than Norton Anti-Virus.

It's garbage software that you have to pay for, and while its busy failing to protect your computer properly, it's preventing you from doing mundane, simple tasks like check your email so that you can call your ISP and scream bloody murder about how your Internet is "broken".

I can honestly say that if the creators of Norton Anti-Virus fell into the Abyss, and I got to watch, I would be happy.

[mudbunny]

My main problems with Norton (when I used it) were the following:

1. The firewall required *constant* tending
2. Any upgrading required several hours of work, completely uninstalling and then running several scrubbers to remove all the left-over crap.
3. Requirement to shell out $$$ in order to get updates.

To expand on 2

With most software, if you install an updated version (for example, 2006 to 2007) it will do what is required to remove 2006 completely. Norton will simply install over top of 2006. Then the installation will fail, requiring a hard-boot of your computer. You now have a half-installed version of Norton. You cannot uninstall it, because you haven't fully installed it. You can't re-install it, it will crash again. You need to go to the Norton Website and find some difficult to track down scrubbers which, in theory, will remove Norton from your computer. Of course, depending on the error you get when you try to install it, you need to use a different scrubber.

[MountainKing]

Wouldn't it have been easier to uninstall it first, then install the updated version? Once bitten, twice learned and all that...

[mudbunny]

I tried uninstalling and then rebooting it the next time.

Same result.

So I gave up on Norton, even though I was getting free copies of Norton Systemworks from my Father-inlaw.

[Penguinizer]

You know. I'm not having any problems with Norton 360...

I actually had more problems with Zone Alarm. I will get some alternatives such as Spyware Blaster and Spybot though. Since I don't want all my accounts stolen...

[MountainKing]

Should've regifted them to a different part of the family mate; though, Norton's worse than Christmas cake, so, it'd better be to someone you don't like.

[Penguinizer]

:P

Actually, Each computer has Norton. And I had one problem. But that was because I had 2 firewalls. So I only use Norton as my AV, anti-spyware goes to other programs. As does fire wall.

[Rawhide]

I find it difficult to comprehend that there's a NIC card that WinXP can't support at *all*... have you tried making a copy of your I386 folder on your PC and then letting Windows search the hard drive for drivers? That's typically what works with reinstallations of Windows or new hardware, unless you're using really, really old hardware.

Trust me, there is, on new hardware.

[MountainKing]

Huh. Well, it doesn't matter much. In the next few years, we'll be using Vista via forced software/hardware upgrade, and then there will be no such thing as "ease of use".

"Now we'll call it "Total Information Technology", or TIT. *snrk* And when you're sucking at the TIT, we've got you by the motherboard! Don't be afraid!" - Robin Williams

[StickMan]

First Norton sucks.

Second Vista is not as bad all that once you get it to shut up. I mean its windows so it sucks but it could be a lot worse.