If you’re one of my clients, chances are good that I’ve installed two anti-spyware programs on your computer. I installed them because they work and because they’re free. I may have uninstalled Norton’s or McAfee’s products from your system because they cause problems, and because they have to be paid for, year after year.
Spyware is so-called because it spies on your computing activity and reports it to a company on the Internet. The loss of privacy is an offense, but the primary evil is that it steals from your computer’s resources. This usually leads to slower performance, and sometimes a failure to perform.
A Good Anti-Spyware Program Can Save You a Lot of Grief
You need to have a good anti-spyware program running on your computer. There are free ones, and there are those for which you pay an annual subscription to be sure you have the most up-to-date protection. In the latter category, perhaps the best antispyware software is Spyware Doctor, provided by a company I’ve respected for many years: PC-Tools.
On the other hand, if you prefer a free program, there are some good ones you might want to consider:
- Ad-Aware Free
- Spybot Search & Destroy
- CWShredder
- Windows Defender
- Spyware fighter
- Windows Defender
Anti-Spyware Programs Can Be Evil
I subscribe to an email newsletter, Windows Secrets (click the link to subscribe for free), and the latest issue has exposed a very serious problem: anti-spyware programs that actually install their own spyware! Here is a list of some of those products that have been uncovered:
- AdwareDeluxe
- AdwarePatrol
- ETD Scanner
- PAL Spyware Remover
- SpySpotter
- AlertSpy
- Allume Internet Cleanup
- SpyBouncer
- SpyOnThis
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