Spyware Cleaners - Ad-Aware, Spybot S&D and CWShredder

[Ray Sigmond]

"Spyware"
Ed Stroligo - 4/5/04
Over the couple weeks, I've had the (mis)fortune to have to deal with a number of machines used by people I know.

Their owners were quite different, ranging from middle-aged porn magnets to well, a little girl who had her new computer for a week.

They all had something in common, though. They all were seriously infected with spyware.

And they all were clueless.

Well, they knew something was wrong when browsers went to different home pages and started malfunctioning; they were at least conscious. But able or willing to try to figure out what might be wrong? Please.

What did I learn in the last couple weeks?


These things are getting nasty. There are thousands and thousands of spyware programs out there. Some have advanced to the point where not only do they resist being removed, they'll even block the websites where you can get the tools to remove them and even send their complaint mail to the sites. Some websites specializing in spyware removal have been knocked off by DDOS attacks.

Nothing removes everything Based on my own experiences and the comments of others, there just isn't any all-purpose cleaner. It's very frustrating to use one program to clear out lots of garbage, then use another and find that it identifies problems the first program didn't even hint at.
Then again, a few of these $#$%#@## are very, very busy mutating their "goods," and unless you practically devote your life to stopping them, it's very easy to fall behind.


There are some good guys out there Here's a few sites run by the good guys:

SpywareInfo

Meriyn.org

TomCoyote.com

These sites provide instructions, links to programs, and programs to get rid of these suckers, and forums.

Personally, I found that using a combo of Adaware, Spybot S&D and CWShredder (the last is essentially for the really nasty stuff) took care of the problems I ran into.

That doesn't mean they'll take care of all of yours, but at least now you have some tools with which to fight back.

Most of what is offered is free, so if they solve your problem, you (or better yet, the person whose machine you cleared up) ought to send some donations out.

Perhaps most importantly, if you have computer dependents, it is probably best to assume if you find yourself visiting their machines, problem or no problem, that they're likely to be infected with something, so you ought to use these programs and instructions to clean those machines out.

Odds are, if you don't do it now, you'll have to do it later.

They Call This Freedom

Maybe it's the schools, maybe it's something else, but people on the Internet yell so much about "freedom" without having a clue as to what the word means.

Freedom is not "I can do anything I want." That's the retardo definition of the word. Freedom really means "I can do anything I want that doesn't interfere with the rights of others."

A lot of people can't handle that. Maybe most. The human sewage responsible for these programs would probably tell you that they're exercising their "freedom."

Spam, spyware, viruses, P2Ping, warez, it all boils down the same thing; the refusal to understand what freedom really is.

And this is why eventually, this "freedom" will be crushed. Because it's not freedom. It's anarchy. And anarchy doesn't work.

Ed
http://www.overclockers.com/tips00561/

Links for the software

Ad-Aware http://www.lavasoft.de/

Spybot S&D http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?page=download

CWShredder
http://209.133.47.200/~merijn/files/CWShredder.exe
or
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/downloads.html

[drliebs]

I hate spyware, it is nasty shite! They spy ware can easily trick even savy users into inadvertantly installing them, some of the message boxes are worded so yes actually means no or vice versa. Other spy ware requires you to download the unistall program. Horseshite! Spy Ware S&D has been great for me allthough I have even had to do some registry editing to fix things. THis stuff is as bad as a virus, worse because it is legal! Definitely give these guys a donation for helping fix the problem.

Do you know what is going to kill mp3 downloading? It is not the music industry or the courts, it is the 'free' market. You simply cannot use grokster or kaza or any of that P2P crap anymore becasue it is infested with spyware that will hijack your computer. They will kill themselves, greedy pricks!

[Electricide]

well, freedom does mean you can do whatever you want. But the Declaration/constitution allow for "liberty", which I believe fits your definition better. It implies a responsibility to others.

Yeah, I run adaware every other day.

[stillafool]

I just dedicate a machine to p2p apps like morpheus, kazaa, etc -- and I don't worry about it. Every couple months I just use norton ghost to restore my hard disk to an earlier point -- works even better than adaware.

[Electricide]

my computer has kazaa lite on it, which apparently has built in spy ware protection. This was a used comp, so I know nothing about kazaa really. Anybody else?

[evan]

Kazaa Lite is a sanitized and greatly enhanced version of the original Kazaa program. It shares the same network and is derived (though heavily altered and significantly different) from the original program, but was developed independently of the original company. For your file-sharing stuff, you might do well checking zeropaid.com to get the low-down on all the various programs out there.

It's really not hard to keep them nasties out. You need to just be generally conscious about what's going on with your computer -- don't install or open stuff you don't know about, don't hit 'yes' to anything you don't understand, etc.! Run Ad-Aware or other anti-mal(icious)ware software as often as you feel is necessary.

Another idea for the slightly more paranoid: don't use Internet Explorer or Outlook. Two biggest targets as they're the two most popular.

[kcrusher]

No worries mate - get a mac!

[Electricide]

Another idea for the slightly more paranoid: don't use Internet Explorer or Outlook. Two biggest targets as they're the two most popular.

I've been using mozilla...which has cookie and popup managment options and pretty good security.

[maz]

No worries mate - get a mac!

no kidding... althought the first mac trojan horse was identified this week... can affect OS X.

I'm always wondering about Spyware for the Mac? Is there anything we have to worry about? I know there are a few utility shareware apps that get a bad rap for sending stats about your system to their servers.

I never used to worry about it while on dialup, but now that I've got DSL and a wireless router I'm wondering how much crap can mess with my good old macs!

[Ray Sigmond]

I found another called Spy Sweeper wihich won PC Magazine Editors choice on 3/2/4

http://www.webroot.com/wb/products/spysweeper/index.php

You can read the article in PC Magazine here

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1524223,00.asp

[Ray Sigmond]

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1524223,00.asp

How to Avoid Spyware
By Sean Carroll

Make sure to run an antispyware application. Perform on-demand scans regularly to root out spyware that slips through the cracks. Reboot after removal and rescan to make sure no ticklers, which are designed to reinstall spyware, have resurrected any deleted apps. Additionally, even though we are not overly impressed with any app's real-time blocking abilities, activate whatever your app of choice offers; it's nearly always better than nothing.

Give your antispyware some backup. In addition to an antispyware app, make sure to run both software and hardware firewalls and antivirus applications to protect yourself against Trojan horses (and viruses, naturally).

Beware of peer-to-peer file-sharing services. Many of the most popular applications include spyware in their installation procedures (see the sidebar "Spyware-Free P2P?for Free"). Also, never download any executables via P2P, because you can't be absolutely certain what they are. Actually, it's a good idea to avoid downloading executables from anywhere but vendors or major, well-checked sites.

Watch out for cookies. While they may not be the worst form of spyware, information gathered via cookies can sometimes be matched with information gathered elsewhere (via Web bugs, for example) to provide surprisingly detailed profiles of you and your browsing habits. PC Magazine's own Cookie Cop 2 (www.pcmag.com/utilities) can help you take control of cookies.

Squash bugs. Web bugs are spies that are activated when you open contaminated HTML e-mail. Get rid of unsolicited e-mail without reading it when you can; turn off the preview pane to delete messages without opening them. In Outlook 2003, Tools | Options, click on the Security tab and select Change Automatic Download Settings. Make sure Don't download pictures or other content automatically in HTML e-mail is checked.

Don't install anything without knowing exactly what it is. This means reading the end-user license agreement (EULA) carefully, as some EULAs will actually tell you that if you install the app in question, you've also decided to install some spyware with the software. Check independent sources as well, as some EULAs won't tell you about spyware.

Protect yourself against drive-by downloads. Make sure your browser settings are stringent enough to protect you. In IE, this means your security settings for the Internet Zone should be at least medium. Deny the browser permission to install any ActiveX control you haven't requested.

Keep up to date on the ever-changing world of spyware. Knowing the threat will help you defeat it. There are several great sites you can visit to keep abreast of this issue. PestPatrol's Research Center (www.pestpatrol.com/pestinfo) has one of the most comprehensive lists of spyware and related threats we've seen. SpywareInfo is another good online source of information. Finally, PC Magazine's Security Scout utility (www.pcmag.com/utilities) aggregates dozens of security-specific news feeds and brings them right to your desktop.

11 Signs of Spyware
By Neil J. Rubenking

You find a new finger-size hardware device connected between your keyboard cable's plug and the corresponding socket on the back of your computer. Or maybe someone recently offered you "a better keyboard."

Your phone bill includes expensive calls to 900 numbers that you never made?probably at an outrageous per-minute rate.

You enter a search term in Internet Explorer's address bar and press Enter to start the search. Instead of your usual search site, an unfamiliar site handles the search.

Your antispyware program or another protective program stops working correctly. It may warn you that certain necessary support files are missing, but if you restore the files they go missing again. It may appear to launch normally and then spontaneously shut down, or it may simply crash whenever you try to run it.

A new item appears in your Favorites list without your putting it there. No matter how many times you delete it, the item always reappears later.

Your system runs noticeably slower than it did before. If you're a Windows 2000/XP user, launching the Task Manager and clicking the Processes tab reveals that an unfamiliar process is using nearly 100 percent of available CPU cycles.

At a time when you're not doing anything online, the send or receive lights on your dial-up or broadband modem blink just as wildly as when you're downloading a file or surfing the Web. Or the network/modem icon in your system tray flashes rapidly even when you're not using the connection.

A search toolbar or other browser toolbar appears even though you didn't request or install it. Your attempts to remove it fail, or it comes back after removal.

You get pop-up advertisements when your browser is not running or when your system is not even connected to the Internet, or you get pop-up ads that address you by name.

When you start your browser, the home page has changed to something undesirable. You change it back manually, but before long you find that it has changed back again.

And the final sign is: Everything appears to be normal. The most devious spyware doesn't leave traces you'd notice, so scan your system anyway.

[kcrusher]

What those hackers and virus creators REALLY need to do is let loose on these spyware and spammer companies. Do us all some good. If they can spam and spyware our computers to the point of crashing, certainly shouldn't be against the law (or at least it should be overlooked like their stuff is..) if someone writes a virus or hacks their systems to the point of crashing. Fairs fair, right?

Personally, if I ever meet someone who I know actually creates spyware or runs a spamming service - well, let's just say they will rue the day.

[Bear]

Thanks for this info, folks. Spyware is a pain in the rumpshaker, to put it mildly.

[mrc]

Spy Sweeper is the bomb. My Kids and wife had every known and unknow spy proggie on their computers, it cleaned up even the worst, n-case...aka gator and a bunch of other names.
mrc

[DryCounty]

I also use a daily combination of AdAware and PopUpStopper, a great pop up blocker:

http://www.panicware.com/product_psfree.html

It also doesn't hurt to keep Norton AutoProtect on at all times.

...but I spend 90% of my time on one of several Macs. My PC is generally my gaming machine. I would never use it for serious work.