Spyware, Malware, Adware, Virus, Trojans....

I have been getting a lot of calls lately regarding non-working machines. Most have been caused by too much spyware, malware, adware, viruses, and trojans. In my searching, I have come across the following free tools. Free is good...

A note on the programs listed below. They all have good help on their respective websites. Please read through their webpages and make sure you understand what will happen with use of these programs. I have not used ALL of these programs, but have used some, so I am not in a position to offer help on every program listed. And remember: there's no more important safety rule than to wear these: safety glasses

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The following is an alternative web browser to Internet Explorer. Most of the adware, spyware, and malware is specifically written for exploits in Internet Explorer. I have been using Firefox for a number of months now, and absolutely love it. It has a built-in popup blocker, and the ability to add extensions that greatly enhance its usefulness.

Mozilla Firefox http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/

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The following programs help stop and get rid of malware, spyware, and adware. A quick note on these tools. It is best to use more than one specific tool. It has been shown that a single tool cannot find and remove all spyware, adware, and malware. Download them all, install them and run them, one after the other, until all three programs can find no more 'baddies' lurking on your system.

Spywareblaster: http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html

Spybot S&D: http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/index.html

Ad-Aware Personal Edition: http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware (Beta):http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx
Note: Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware (Beta) works well, but only works on systems running MS Windows 2000 or above. Sorry you 98 users (all three of you. You know, even Microsoft doesn't support Windows 98 anymore. It's time to upgrade!), but you will have to use the other tools that are listed.

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The following programs are free Anti-virus scanners.

Grisoft AVG Free Edition http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1

avast! 4 Home Edition http://www.avast.com/eng/down_home.html

Updates to both programs can be found on their respective websites. Check them often and get the latest virus updates for whichever program you use. This will ensure that the scan engine will have the ability to detect the latest threats.

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The following websites have removal tools for various virii and trojans

McAfee AVERT Stinger http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/
Stinger is updated as new threats are identified. It usually contains fixes for the current top 40 threats, and is updated frequently. I suggest downloading the latest copy each and every time you want to run this program.

Grisoft Virus Removal Tools http://www.grisoft.com/us/us_ts_removers.php

Symantec Virus Removal Tools http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/tools.list.html
Symantec's site offers excellent instructions on the use of each individual removal tool

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The following sites offer free personal firewall programs

ZoneLabs ZoneAlarm http://www.zonelabs.com/store/content/company/products/trial_zaFamily/trial_zaFamily.jsp?lid=2home_freedownloads

Kerio Personal Firewall (KPF) http://www.kerio.com/us/kpf_home.html

Outpost Firewall from Agnitum http://www.agnitum.com/products/outpost/

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Please feel free to post comments about the software listed here, and definitely add to this list software that you use.