Anti-Spyware Tools
Below is a fairly comprehensive list of the antivirus products available that we have reviewed and have been in the market place for more than a few months. Some are free, some cost a little, and some cost a lot. Our recommendations are highlighted. Anti-virus packages that are popular in the marketplace are identified with an *.Is there a difference between the free tools and the commercial products? Definitely. The free tools are certainly better than using nothing, but obviously, those companies do not have the staff or resources to continually research and update their products as the commercial products do.
Commercial Spyware Detection and Removal Programs
- Acronis Privacy Expert Suite
- Advanced System Optimizer / Spyware Detective
- McAfee AntiSpyware
- Microsoft AntiSpyware (Beta)
- * PestPatrol SpySubtract Spyware Doctor sunbeltsoftware.com/CounterSpy.cfm">Sunbelt CounterSpy
- * Webroot Spy Sweeper X-Cleaner Deluxe
Free Detection and Removal Tools
Downloaded Detection and Removal Programs
- Lavasoft Ad-aware
or http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ - Spybot Search & Destroy
http://beam.to/spybotsd
also available here http://www.safer-networking.org/
- Alken - Cult of the amazing puffins
http://www.alken.nl/spy.htm
- and.doxdesk.com - Parasite Check
http://www.doxdesk.com/parasite/
- EarthLink Spy Audit
http://www.earthlink.net/spyaudit/
- EarthLink Spyware Blocker
http://www.earthlink.net/home/software/spywareblocker/
- Bazooka Adware & Spyware Scanner
http://www.kephyr.com/spywarescanner/index.html
- PestScan - Online Scanner
http://www.pestscan.com/
- or http://www.my-etrust.com/products/pestscan/index.cfm
- SpywareGuide.com ActiveX Spyware Scanning
http://www.spywareguide.com/txt_onlinescan.html
- SpywareInfo - Online Scanner
http://www.spywareinfo.com/xscan.php
- Sunbelt - Free Online Scanner
http://www.sunbeltscan.com/
- Webroot Spy Audit
http://www.webroot.com/services/spyaudit_03.htm
- Webroot Corporate Spy Audit
http://www.webrootdisp.net/entaudit/start.php
- Winguard Spyware Detector
http://www.winguard.org/scan/
- X-Cleaner Free
http://www.xblock.com/freeware
- or http://www.xblock.com/xcleaner_free.exe (direct download)
Web-based Tools (some only detect spyware and adware)
Miscellaneous Blockers and Firewalls
- Adware & Spyware Firewall http://www.flyyasoft.com/
- Aluria Spyware Eliminator http://www.aluriasoftware.com/spywareeliminator/
- Nitrous Online's SpyBuster http://www.spy-buster.com/
- or http://www.nitrousonline.com/
- Omniquad My Privacy http://www.omniquad.com/Omniquad_MyPrivacy.htm
- Omniquad AntiSpy http://www.omniquad.com/antispy.htm
- or http://www.toolsthatwork.com/antispy.htm
- SpyRemover http://www.itcompany.com/remover.htm
- Spyware X-terminator http://www.stompsoft.com/spyx/
- Steganos AntiSpyware http://www.steganos.com/?product=SASPY7
- System Mechanic 5 / Spython http://www.iolo.com/sm/
- Tenebril GhostSurf http://www.tenebril.com/products/ghostsurf/
- Tenebril SpyCatcher
- http://www.tenebril.com/products/ghostsurf/spycatcher.html
Diagnostic Tools
- ActiveXcavator
http://img.cmpnet.com/byte/columns/frantz/1999/06/XCavate.exe (direct
download) or http://www.cognitronix.com/index.html#A1
- ActiveX Compatibility Manager
http://nirsoft.cjb.net/
- Ad-aware BHO
http://members.shaw.ca/techcd/VB_Projects/
- a-squared HiJackFree
http://www.hijackfree.com/en/
- BHOCaptor
http://www.snapfiles.com/get/bho.html
- BHO Cop
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,2023,00.asp
- BHODemon
http://www.definitivesolutions.com/bhodemon.htm
- BHOList
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/
- BHOScanner
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4529.html
- Help2Go Detective
http://www.help2go.com/modules.php?name=HJTDetective
- HijackThis
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/
Note: for instructions on using HijackThis! see
HERE,
HERE, and
HERE.
- HijackThis - Automated Online Analysis
http://hijackthis.de/index.php
- IE Doctor http://www.axesoft.com/iedr/
- Microsoft - OLE/COM Object Viewer
http://www.microsoft.com/com/resources/oleview.asp
- SpyFlush
http://www.spyflush.com/
- SpywareGuide.com Search Plugin
http://www.spywareguide.com/searchplugin.php
- System Spyware Interrogator (SSI)
http://www.spywaredata.com/index.php
- ToolbarCop
http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/toolbarcop.htm
- Winsock/LSP Fix
http://www.cexx.org/lspfix.htm or
http://members.shaw.ca/techcd/... (direct download)
- X-RayPC
http://www.x-raypc.com/
Prevention Tools
- AdAware Checker
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/aawchecker.html
- Browser Hijack Blaster
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/bhblaster.html
- BrowserSentinel http://www.browsersentinel.com/
- Doug Knox - Internet Explorer Fixes
http://www.dougknox.com/security/index.htm
- DSOstop2
http://www.nsclean.com/dsostop.html
- Enough is Enough! - IE Lockdown Utility
- Click HERE
- ewido security suite http://www.ewido.net/en/
- Home Page Monitor
http://www.exits.ro/
- HTAstop
http://www.nsclean.com/htastop.html
- ID-Blaster
http://www.wilderssecurity.net/idblaster.html
- IEGuardian http://www.devicode.com/ieguardian/
- IE Restrictions
camtech2000.net/Pages/Restrictions.htm"
http://camtech2000.net/Pages/Restrictions.htm
- IE-SPYAD (IE Restricted zone list)
- Click HERE
- Internet Spy Hunter popupkiller2002 http://popupkiller2002.tripod.com/
- or http://www.tooto.com/spyhunter/
- Privacy Defender http://www.pcsecurityshield.com/
- Prevx
- https://www.prevx.com/
- RegBlock http://www.regblock.com/
- RegRun http://greatis.com/security/
- Registry Firewall http://www.flyyasoft.com/RegFirewall.htm
- Settings Sentry http://www.spyblocker-software.com/ss/index.shtml
- Smog's Ad Kill
http://smog.cjb.net/html/adkill.htm
- Spy Chaser http://camtech2000.net/Pages/SpyChaser.html
- Spychecker
http://www.spychecker.com/home.html
- SpywareBlaster
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html
- or http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html
- SpywareBlaster Custom Blocking List
http://customblockinglist.cjb.net/
- SpywareGuard
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareguard.html
- or http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareguard.html
- SpywareGuide Blocklist
http://www.spywareguide.com/blockfile.php
- Spyware Inoculator http://camtech2000.net/Pages/Spyware_Inoculator.html
- SpywareStopper http://www.spyware-stopper.com/
- Security Task Manager http://www.neuber.com/taskmanager/index.html
- StartPage Guard
http://pjwalczak.com/spguard/index.php
- StartupList
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/
- or http://www.lurkhere.com/~nicefiles/index.html
- or http://www.geocities.com/.../files.html (old)
- StartupListUI
- http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,6835488...
- or http://www.dslreports.com/.../StartupListUI.zip (direct download)
- StartUp Monitor
http://www.mlin.net/StartupMonitor.shtml
- WinPatrol
http://www.winpatrol.com/
- WinTasks 5 Professional http://www.liutilities.com/products/wintaskspro/
- XP-AntiSpy
http://www.xp-antispy.org/
Specialized Tools
Dialer Blockers
- 0190 Alarm (Deutsch)
http://www.winload.de/beschreibung.php?programm_id=730
- 0190 Warner (Italian)
http://www.wt-rate.com/freeware1.htm
- Bluffstopparen (Swedish)
- http://www.konsumentverket.se/...
- CheckDialer http://www.trsecurity.net/checkdialer/
- Connectionwatch (Deutsch) http://www.schutzsoftware.info/
- Dialer-Control (Deutsch) http://www.dialer-control.de/
- Dialer-Scanner (Deutsch) http://www.dialerscanner.de/
- DialerSpy
http://www.dialerspy.com/en/
- DialGuard http://www.dialguard.com/en/
- Popupkiller & DialerDetektor (Deutsch) http://www.boesherz-online.de/
- SenseConnect (Deutsch) http://www.senseconnect.de/
- SmartSurfer (Deutsch) http://smartsurfer.web.de/
- Sophos - Removing Dialers http://www.us.sophos.com/support/disinfection/dial.html
- StopDialers (Italian)
http://www.akapulce.net/socket2000/stopdialer.asp
- StopITNow http://www.stopitnow.com.au/
Individual Uninstallers to Remove Specific Pests, Toolbars and Programs
- Backdoor.Autoupder Removal Tool
- http://securityresponse.symantec.com/...removal.tool.html
- B3D/BDE Killer (Brilliant Digital)
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/B3DKiller.html
- BDEcide (Brilliant Digital)
http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Quarters/5077/new/files.html
- BDE Remove (Brilliant Digital)
http://keir.net/bde.html
- Cexx.org
- Cydoor Dummy Files
http://cexx.org/dummies.htm - Experimental Fix for Corrupted Winsock Settings
http://cexx.org/winsock.txt - How to Kill Popup Ads on ANY Server!
http://cexx.org/diepop.htm - LSP Fix
http://cexx.org/lspfix.htm - Possible Fix for Corrupted Winsock Settings
http://cexx.org/winsock.htm - TSADBOT Dummy File
http://cexx.org/tsadbot.htm
- Cydoor Dummy Files
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/
http://www.intermute.com/products/cwshredder.html http://forums.subratam.org/index.php?showtopic=583 http://www.trojaner-info.de/anleitungen/hijackthis/about_blank.html http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4289.html http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/backdoor.agent.b.removal.tool.html
http://www.hsremove.com/
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/winfiles.html http://www.grokster.com/virusinformation.html http://www.grokster.com/files/dlder-remove.exe (direct download)
http://www.simplytech.it/ETRemover/
http://www.searchking.com/ezulakiller/
http://www.getright.com/remove_ads.html
http://www.handybits.com/update_service.asp
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/ http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Quarters/5077/new/files.html
http://www.mattelsupport.com/brodcastpatch.asp
http://www.new.net/help_faq.tp#p5
http://www.mjc1.com/files/peperpage/
http://www.grokster.com/files/unspnv.exe (direct download)
http://www.showbehind.com/opt-out.html
http://www.thiefware.com/whenu/
http://www.thiefware.com/disabler/
And please let us know about any suspicious calls or emails you receive. We look for patterns so that we can alert the authorities and victims to new scams, before it is too late!
For a comprehensive list of national and international agencies to report scams, see this page.