Spyware Doctor

[Dave Davison]

Hi.......in light of the information / comments in the following article, http://spybotsearchdestroy.us/?gclid=CI ... 2Aod4VBPDw is it prudent to download Spyware Doctor rather than SpyBot S & D which is said to be very basic, or is this merely trying to persuade readers to purchase the former. Having asked that, are there any other progs that are as good as or better than SWDoctor? I seem to be getting a lot of hassle with Malware lately as running Malwarebytes Anti-malware twice in the past few days have revealed 32 items and 15 respectively which I duly deleted. This despite the fact that I am only accessing web sites I have used for many years. Thanks Dave.

[John Gray]

The three on-demand anti-nasties scanning utilities I like at present are:

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
• SuperAntiSpyware
• Hitman Pro

but (the free versions of) these are only of use after the event, to clear up infections, not prevent them.

It sounds to me that you need a proper Internet Security Suite which includes some degree of browser protection. I use Kaspersky, and Norton has a much better reputation than it had a few years ago. Unfortunately these cost (some) money.

About five years ago I would have recommended Spybot and Ad-Aware, but they seem to have been superseded by better products...

[HansV]

Microsoft Security Essentials does a good job protecting your computer in "real time", and it's completely free.
For extra security you could run a check once in a while with the programs mentioned by John Gray. (I do that once a week)

[Dave Davison]

Thank you gents... I had M S Essentials installed and running before I had the invasion of some Malware which necessitated the wiping of my "C" drive as it messed up so many progs, and also had Malware Bytes Anti-Malware which I ran weekly hense I was amazed when my computer went haywire. The shop technician who wiped my C drive installed Avira saying it was adequate so would downloading SuperAntiSpyware -and only running it occasioanlly - be prudent or would it conflict with what I already have? I have read numerous times that it is not expedient to have two A/S progs. installed on the same computer but is it possibe to have only one active and the second available for the occasional scan? Sorry...slow learner but taking small steps one at a time... Regards Dave.

ps...am I right in asuming, because no mention was made of the Spyware Doctor suggestion, that it is not essential?

[HansV]

You should use only one anti-virus program for run-time protection. There is no objection, however, to installing other security programs in order to run a scan from time to time.

SpywareDoctor is a good program, you could use it for occasional scanning instead of SuperAntiSpyware mentioned by John Gray.

The most important security measure, however, is to be very careful:

- Don't open attachments in e-mails if you aren't sure that you can trust them.
- Don't follow links in e-mails if you aren't sure that you can trust them.
- Don't follow links on web pages if you aren't sure that you can trust them.
- Don't visit "shady" websites.
- Don't allow websites to install software on your PC if you aren't certain what it's for and that it's safe.

Even if your security software is up-to-date, if YOU accidentally allow malware to be installed on your PC, the damage may be done before the security software can kick in...

[Dave Davison]

.......sound advice...will remember all the points made... SpywareDoctor seems to be a paid for prog so I will make do with what I have already got...as ever, Many thanks Dave.

[viking33]

.......sound advice...will remember all the points made... SpywareDoctor seems to be a paid for prog so I will make do with what I have already got...as ever, Many thanks Dave.

You DO have a firewall running at all times,right, Dave?
Just checking, since you didn't mention it at all.

[Dave Davison]

Sorry Bob for NOT indicating that; Yes.....I have M.S.Essentials running but must admit that it spasmodically gets disabled for some onknown reason... when I notice in the sys tray that it has been so actioned I immediately turn it on. Thanks for the reply Dave.

[stuck]

Sorry Bob for NOT indicating that; Yes.....I have M.S.Essentials running

but MSE is NOT a firewall, it's an anti-virus application.

Ken

[viking33]

Sorry Bob for NOT indicating that; Yes.....I have M.S.Essentials running but must admit that it spasmodically gets disabled for some onknown reason... when I notice in the sys tray that it has been so actioned I immediately turn it on. Thanks for the reply Dave.

Just spotted your reply but I see Ken posted a correct answer re: MSE

[Dave Davison]

Hi gents....just checked my control panel and note that I have Windows Firewall selected...the shop owner who recently wiped my "C" drive and reinstalled XP [Yep, I know I'm back in the days of steam but I'm used to it (XP) and it serves my requirements] so HE must have selected the said firewall. As I intimated earlier, I have M.S.Essential; Avira; Secunia; MalwareBytes and Spybot S & D; the last two which I run ocasionally. Advice would be appreciated regarding that list as to there compatibility also I am interested to know if AVG is a better option than Avira and if Zone Alarm is better than the windows firewall that comes with XP? Slow to learn but keen to...Regards Dave.

[HansV]

The built-in Windows XP Firewall is sufficient (if you're careful with e-mail and surfing). There is no real need to replace it with ZoneAlarm. But there's no objection to doing so either.

Microsoft Security Essentials and Avira are both anti-virus programs; you should not have them running at the same time - you should have only one active anti-virus program. Both are good, so just pick one of the two.
AVG used to be one of the top anti-virus programs, but its reputation isn't what it used to be, so I wouldn't recommend it over Microsoft Security Essentials or Avira.

[Dave Davison]

As ever....a thousand thanks Hans for your concise - prompt reply, I shall uninstall M.S.E right away as the shop owner too swares by Avira. Regards Dave.

[ChrisGreaves]

but MSE is NOT a firewall, it's an anti-virus application.

Thanks Ken.
(Wanders off through Start, Settings, Control Panel, Security Center, ... )