Just wondering what other members think about whether spybot is still a one to have in the fight against spyware.
Not for me Hazel, I gave it up along with Adaware SE a year ago. They both seem oudated to me, when compared with Superantispyware, AVG anti Malware and some of the others. But, I know both programs have a lot of supporters.
Same here Mike, run both the apps you mentioned but wondered how many others still ran spybot, and if people thought it was still worthwhile having.
I did the same thing as Mike. All that time reading Wilders did it to me.
Well, both Ad-Aware and SpyBot still get updated on a regular basis and in view of the fact that both are freeware you could do worse than run a scan with either or both of them every now and then.
After all, NO application's detection rate is 100% and nothing beats a layered defense.
After all, NO application's detection rate is 100% and nothing beats a layered defense.
Agreed, and it's the reason I still rarely on occasion scan with Ad-Aware and Spybot-S&D.
Spybot-S&D does however to this day still annoy the hell out of me with extremely slow scanning and subsequent false positives pertaining to the Windows HOSTS file of correctly inputted blocked sites - whereas other anti-malware isn't producing false positives when scanning it, hence the reason I've disabled that detection in my installation.
Ad-Aware and Spybot-S&D in their current incarnations may seem somewhat like "relics" compared to the newer malware fighters especially feature-wise, however they're still updated regularly and they're still a very valid tool from trusted sources in defending against malware.
Maybe it's just because they seem relics of an old and almost forgotten age...
But that's exactly way why I'm keeping them. Call me a sentimental guy.
Maybe it's just because they seem relics of an old and almost forgotten age...
But that's exactly way why I'm keeping them. Call me a sentimental guy.
Also, let's not forget that "newer" is not necessarily better...
Also, let's not forget that "newer" is not necessarily better...
A Ford model T is still a car and gets you from place to place, but an Aston Martin does it so much better and quicker
I will use them sometimes but for the most part AVG AS and Superantispyware get the job done better than spybot and adaware.
A Ford model T is still a car and gets you from place to place, but an Aston Martin does it so much better and quicker
That's not the same analogy, but have fun with it anyway.
SuperAntiSpyware and Spyware Blasters active protection (running unnoticable at about 12mb).
I still have both spybot and adaware, I also have spywareguard and spyware blaster. Between them, AVG, and my firewall I have had little or no problems.
One of the reasons for not upgrading is the "real time" scanning they all boast about. It means yet another program demanding to be loaded at startup, more warning messages, slower surfing, and more system resources being used up. Unless your visiting sites that deal in warez, cracks and pornography on a regular basis, I really don't see the need for them.
Using Firefox with the "no script" extension really helps as well. Most folk return to the same sites everyday, so setting noscript to allow or disallow scripts is hardly an everyday chore.
From my experience in computing, the phrase "don't install it if you don't need it " is still very true. Getting the latest software with all the bells and whistles isn't necessarily the best option, they sometimes make matters worse, or are simply unnecessary for your needs.
Hmm, seemed to have waffled a bit here I'm sure you know what I mean.
That's not the same analogy, but have fun with it anyway.
SuperAntiSpyware and Spyware Blasters active protection (running unnoticable at about 12mb).
Spyware blaster doesn't run anything realtime. It just puts some sites for your browser to block.
Superantispyware is only a trial but maybe you bought it. I love the on demand scanner for super but I'm not a huge fan of real time antispyware.
I still have both spybot and adaware, I also have spywareguard and spyware blaster. Between them, AVG, and my firewall I have had little or no problems.
One of the reasons for not upgrading is the "real time" scanning they all boast about. It means yet another program demanding to be loaded at startup, more warning messages, slower surfing, and more system resources being used up. Unless your visiting sites that deal in warez, cracks and pornography on a regular basis, I really don't see the need for them.
Spybot has realtime protection if you enable it. Its called teatimer.
AVG antispyware and Superantispyware have realtime protection but you must pay for them(like adaware) but also like adaware you can update them for free and use the on demand scanner for free.(so no slowdown) The only difference is that they are just better at finding the newest junk.
Using Firefox with the "no script" extension really helps as well. Most folk return to the same sites everyday, so setting noscript to allow or disallow scripts is hardly an everyday chore.
I found no script annoying. I do visit the same sites every day for the most part but those aren't the only sites I visit. Having to reload pages to see the whole thing was maddening.
(yes I'm inpatient.) I only use security software that doesn't interfere in my everyday usage of the computer. They have to be just about transparent.
Spyware Blaster pro-active protection. The 12mb must have been the GUI. My mistake.
SuperAntiSpyware home edition is free. Here: Your mistake.
SuperAntiSpyware home edition is free. Here: Your mistake.
No your mistake.
The real time protection for super is only a trial. Once the trial is up you have to pay for it. (you can still update and use the on demand scanner though)
Many software companies seem to change the attitude towards their customers when they get successful; we have seen several really bad such examples in the recent past. Lavasoft was one of the earlier companies to try that; some of you may remember the episode when they changed their detection algorithm, which allowed some spyware to be bypassed. Although they did not do that intentionally, it resulted in hundreds of complaints in their support forum. The first sign of bad was that all complaints got deleted by the forum moderators. When more complaints arrived than the moderators could delete, they shut the forum down permanently. No more support, even for (paid) Pro users. (They did set up some kind of 'Pro' support web site, but I have never been able to login. E-mails to support staff were never answered.)
That's when I knew that this company was "over the hill", and I uninstalled Ad-aware Pro that I have used for so many years. Ad-aware was a very good product once (the first anti-spyware, to my knowledge), but no longer.
My current favorites: AVG Anti-spyware (ewido), and Prevx1.
P.S. similar story with my long-time used firewall (maybe also the 1st software firewall) - it's out, and in is Comodo.
right now, i only use Spybot due to its Imunization feature. i am not sure what exactly it does, but as long as it does something...
It does the same thing as spyware blaster.
Spybot has realtime protection if you enable it. Its called teatimer.
Not arguing about anything you've said....each to thier own, however the teatime function in spybot I found isn't compatable with vista. The options to ignore any changes to the registry isn't avialable.
I even tried a beta version of teatimer, which is very buggy with no luck. Have a look here for the program I'm talking about...