Spybot Search and Destroy 1.3
There is nothing worse than a PC infected with malicious software. Most people are aware of viruses, but there are many other unsavoury programs lurking on the internet waiting to invade your PC and your privacy, and unfortunately antivirus programs are often not up to the job of detecting these invaders.
Spybot Search and Destroy is a free program that seeks to remove these malicious programs, and it goes one step further, it can protect your PC against further attacks.
Earlier versions of Spybot S & D were not always easy to use, and were not always as effective as competing product, Adaware (see related article).
The latest version of Spybot is a big improvement. It is straighforward to use for beginners, but for experienced users, there are advanced options available. There are three advantages over Adaware that I detected in informal testing. Firstly Spybot is completely free. Adaware is free for non commercial use, but for advanced features or business users you will need to pay. The second advantage is the ability to scan for cookies that present privacy issues in Mozilla and Firefox. Although these web browsers don't generally present the same risk as Internet Explorer, it is still good to be able to scan these programs for privacy issues.
The third and final advantage is what I'd describe as the 'killer' reason to have Spybot S & D installed on your PC. Spybot S & D provides 'immunisation' that automatically blocks known spyware, and spyware sites from infecting your PC in the first place. If you've had kids who've managed to infect your PC by accident, and then you've had to pay to get things fixed, you'll know how much this feature can save you.
I personally like Adaware, because it is pretty idiot proof, but even if you use Adaware for spyware scanning and removal, it's worth installing Spybot S & D to protect you against future problems before they arrive. Adaware does offer a similar feature, but this is only available in paid for versions.
If you use Internet Explorer (as most people do) this single feature is a must have.
In standard (simple) mode, Spybot is a bit easier to use to remove unwanted stuff on your computer. Adaware requires a user to right click and choose 'select all', which can be a bit counterintuitive, but Spybot simply provides a button labelled 'fix problems'.
The download is a little over four megabytes, so even on a modem connection your shouldn't need more than about half an hour to download.
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