Removing Spyware

  • Thread starter Thread starter Brian Hastings
  • Start date Start date
B

Brian Hastings

I have XP Pro build 2600 and using the SP1a and I have had
visitied some sites didn't realise had spyware.. What is
the proper way to remove, and what program do you suggest
to have it removed.

Thanks,
Brian
 
There are a number of spyware programs out there. I use spysweeper which works pretty good. Spybot is another one that alot of people use.
 
spybot is free (they ask for an optional donation) and I have heard many good things about it

It will search, find and destory spyware on your computer. When it locates the spyware it will recomend a process for cleaning or deleting it. MAKE SURE YOU ARE NOT DELETING OR CHANGING A FILE THAT COULD ALTER YOUR SYSTEM. SOMETIMES THESE SPYWARES ARE SOMETIMES FOUND IN YOUR SYSTEM REGISTRY AND CERTAIN CHANGES WILL CAUSE PROGRAMS TO BECOME UNRESPONSIVE. (I am speaking from experience here)
 
Brian Hastings said:
I have XP Pro build 2600 and using the SP1a and I have had
visitied some sites didn't realise had spyware.. What is
the proper way to remove, and what program do you suggest
to have it removed.

Thanks,
Brian
Click to expand...

I had used a couple of spy/adware detectors with limited results.
My favorite is Bazooka. Not only did it find what others didn't,
but it gives instructions on how to manually fix the problems.

http://www.kephyr.com/spywarescanner/index.html?source=appvisit
 
The only issue I have with Spybot is it appears it will
not support my system since I have 2 HD 1 main 19 Gig and
2nd (slave) 80 gig. It doesn't seem to search the entire
drive and it seems to have a limit and wants to search oa
limit of 12814k and no more no less. It allways finds 11
and then after a hour later there is still 11 found. So,
it appears it doesn't work.

Brian
-----Original Message-----
There are a number of spyware programs out there. I use
Click to expand...
spysweeper which works pretty good. Spybot is another one
that alot of people use.
 
The only issue I have with Spybot is it appears it will
not support my system since I have 2 HD 1 main 19 Gig and
2nd (slave) 80 gig. It doesn't seem to search the entire
drive and it seems to have a limit and wants to search oa
limit of 12814k and no more no less. It allways finds 11
and then after a hour later there is still 11 found. So,
it appears it doesn't work.

Brian
spysweeper which works pretty good. Spybot is another one
that alot of people use.
Click to expand...

Brian,

Spybot, followed by HijackThis, is a pretty good combo for removing spyware.
Except that some spyware contains code to protect itself, by interfering with
the detection / removal process.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4086.html

So, you need multiple products. Fortunately, all tools discussed here are free.

How current is your virus protection? Try these free online virus scans:
<http://www.bitdefender.com/scan/license.php>
<http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/com/activescan_principal.htm>
<http://security.symantec.com/ssc/home.asp>
<http://housecall.trendmicro.com/housecall/start_corp.asp>

Now check for, and learn to defend against, additional carriers of infection.

First, download LSP-Fix and WinsockXPFIx from <http://www.cexx.org/lspfix.htm>,
and CWShredder from <http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4086.html>. All are
free.

Next, close all Internet Explorer and Outlook windows, then run CWShredder.
Have it fix all variants.

Now check for, and remove, spyware. Get HijackThis
<http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=3155> and Spybot S&D
<http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?page=download>. Both free.
1) Install and run Spybot. First update it ("Search for updates"), then run a
scan ("Check for problems"). Trust Spybot, and make all recommended deletions.
2) Install and run HijackThis. Do NOT make any changes immediately. Save the
HJT Log.
3) Have your HJT log interpreted by experts at one or more of the following
forums (and post it here):
<http://forums.net-integration.net/>
<http://www.spywareinfo.com/forums/>
<http://forums.tomcoyote.org/>
<http://www.wilderssecurity.com/>

If removal of any spyware affects your ability to access the internet (some
spyware builds itself into the network software, and its removal may damage your
network), run LSP-Fix and / or WinsockXPFIx.

Harden your browser. There are various websites which will check for
vulnerabilities, here are three which I use.
http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/BrowserSecurity/
http://bcheck.scanit.be/bcheck/
https://testzone.secunia.com/browser_checker/

Harden your operating system. Check at least monthly for security updates.
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/

Block possibly dangerous websites with a Hosts file. Three Hosts file sources I
use:
http://www.accs-net.com/hosts/get_hosts.html
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
(The third is included, and updated, with Spybot (see above)).

Cheers,
Chuck
Paranoia comes from experience - and is not necessarily a bad thing.
 
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