Microsoft Antispyware Beta

Ad-Aware SE

Spybot-S&D

Spyware and its even more evil brother, malware, are the most common reasons for computer slow-downs and the number one reasons for people seeking computer repair. Simply put, spyware tracks what you browse on the web and reports this information to advertisers. More malicious forms of spyware actually hijack your browser and deliver advertisements to your computer in the form of pop-ups. If you use the internet, and if you've never checked for it, you almost certainly have spyware.

Where does it come from? Remember that little email joke that your Aunt Petunia sent you? You know, the one where you run a program that shows a dancing kitten showing a greeting card? Bang! You're infected. Or what about that neat utility that shows the weather on your screen? Or that cool screensaver of windmills and waterfalls? All these innocent diversions are potential containers for spyware. Even worse, if you do not have the most recent Windows security updates or have your browser security settings set too low, you can become infected by just browsing certain websites.

Microsoft classes its anti-spyware product as beta, but it is actually the best product out there right now. Also very good are Lavasoft's Ad-Aware and Spybot-S&D. You can't go wrong with any of these products. Many people run two or all three. These same people wear both belts and suspenders. No seriously, you do run across infections that are better handled by one product over another.

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx

http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html