26 replies to this topic

[Elyubarov]

You can get rid of spyware by operating on linux :-), i haven't heard of any companies writing spyware for linux.

[special_angel]

Once I use PestScan how do I remove manually?

[StOrM]

Once you know what you have. Search on the PestPatrol site for the name of the spyware you have and you should be able to get all the information you need

[sugarmaplegurl14]

Thanks for all this, but none of you actually answered my original question...lol.

[Frightcrawler]

Quote

My lineup of arsenals for combating spyware, viruses, intrusions, etc. is the following...

1. Zonealarm (Best free firewall out there, I might upgrade to the whole security suite)
2. Ad-aware SE (This software is best at catching spyware)
3. Spybot Search & Destroy (It catches whatever ad-aware misses and it continuously monitors for suspected registry changes and new spyware)
4. Avast antivirus (First antivirus I have seen that continuously monitors my system and updates on its own)
5. Startup Mechanic (I use this to check and remove any startup entries that cause my comp to lag and any spyware or pop-up producing entries)

The misconception about Ad-aware is that it removes spyware. It doesn't! Ad-aware removes adware. Spybot removes spyware. Big difference. Adware is not as severe as spyware. If you are getting a small amount of findings in Spybot, it's a good thing. It may not necessarily mean that ad-aware is gobbling it up, though. It could just mean that you don't have many spywares in your computer.

I stopped using Zonealarm because it gives you almost no power over your security. The most configuration you will probably do is move the slider up and down. I prefer Sygate Personal Firewall. It's great. Outpost is also nice because you can use plugins. The antiRIAA (Blockpost) one is great. I have Outpost on my desktop, since it doesnt use as much resources as other firewalls (my desktop sucks) and because my desktop has quite a bit of some...stuff that I wouldn't the RIAA to see.

Avast is a great, free antivirus. I recommend it to anyone who doesnt want to pay for one. Out of the three "top" free AV's (AVG, Avast, Anti-vir), Avast is the most powerful. I used to use it, but stopped when I found out that Verizon gives away Mcafee VirusScan8 free to its customers. As a general rule, only use a free AV when a comercial AV is unavailable. Comercial AV's are almost always more powerful, for obvious reasons.

I also noticed that you do not have SpywareBlaster in your arsenal. Out of my three main adware/spyware defenders, (Ad-aware, spybot, and spywareblaster), SpywareBlaster is the most important, in my opinion. It stops spyware from entering in the first place. Total ownage. 8)
It's even mentioned in Spybot.

[Retina]

I use Kerio Personal Firewall, seems to work pretty well.

[Elyubarov]

I use PG+IP masquerading on linux