new thread
Was noticing this on the board today:This forum brought to you by Spyware Nuker.
Huh? Does this mean this board puts spyware on my computer?
What is that all about?
>Spyware Nuker.
They are the sponsors of this board. You would think shampoo companies would be clamoring for that spot but in a way it is better to have an unrelated sponsor.
> Huh? Does this mean this board puts spyware on my computer?
No it doesn't. This board does not use spyware. I know because I regularly check my system for spyware.
Spyware Nuker is a category of utility programs that scans your computer for... uh, Spyware. Spyware is software that is clandestinely loaded onto your computer and monitors and reports your activities to an interested party. They typically report which web sites you visited and how long you stayed on each page. More sinister spyware can sniff around your files and report, for example, how many MP3s you have on your system.
A Spyware detection utility detects spyware and in some cases eliminates it (I would assume Spyware Nuker "nukes" it, a happy thought). I highly recommend every scan their computer periodically with a spyware detection utility, even if you also have an antivirus utility.
BTW, I am a computer engineer, specializing in data communications. You have probably used my software. And I am growing my hair long :)
Would you recommend getting a spyware remover? If so, which do you recommend? Also, is this something I can do myself w/out certain software? If so, how?
Thanks, it's nice to have a long hair computer engineer here!
BTW, I don't develop consumer software so I am unrelated to any of these companies and products.
Yes. Some antivirus utilities now have have limited spyware functionality but at this time I prefer a dedicated utility. Spyware detection and removal is something that has to be done by a specialized (and trustworthy) program because it tinkers with the infamous Windows "registry".
Now this gets tricky because this hyperboard, which I value, is sponsored by Spyware Nuker. I appreciate their sponsorship. I haven't tried them yet. The utility I have been using is the freeware "Ad-aware" from LavaSoft (www.lavasoft.nu <- NB: 'nu' NOT 'com'). I have been using Ad-aware five but they just released version six. Ad-aware is free for individual use. The main problem in version five is that it is very slow. I haven't tried Ad-aware six yet, nor have I tried Spyware Nuker. I will check out both when I get a few minutes to set up a test system. There are other spyware utilities out there and it is good to get a few recommendations before you use them... it is also important to make a backup of your system before you run this type of utility.
;)
Don't worry about that. This is in large part an experiment on my part. Until you posted your message about Ad-Aware, I didn't realize how similar the products are to each other, down to the same look-and-feel. I'm all for using free products when they are available, if they are decent.
I installed Ad-Aware myself, and I like it. It's configurable enough and fast enough (scans my computer with an oversized registry, three hard drives, total about 160 Gig of space, and several hundred thousand files in a few minutes).
Frankly, I had forgotten about Ad-Aware when I found out about Spyware Nuker.
I recently installed Lavasoft Ad-aware 6. It does seem a little faster than the previous one, there are also regular downloadable updates issued. I also think that it is sensible to perform a backup before allowing a utility to delete files or Registry entries, although Ad-aware does save anything it has removed (like anti-virus "quarantine") and can restore it if needed.
I did try Nuker, my main beef with this is the fact that while the freeware version will detect "spyware", the deletion function has been disabled. You have to pay for this one I'm afraid.
Thanks, Gollan. Maybe I'll give Adaware a try...
On the contrary, the link is to a tool to help you REMOVE spyware. This is my first experiment with puting advertising on the board. I've run the board for years without advertising, and I thought I'd give this a try and see how it goes. Others have pointed out that there is freeware that essentially does the same thing. For that reason alone, I will probably take the ad down.
No. Recently the Webmaster posted a message to say that Spyware Nuker would be promoted and made available to download via a link on this board. This software is designed to detect and remove "spyware" that may already be in your system, rather than putting it there.
Other anti-spyware software is available, Spybot and Lavasoft Ad-aware are very good, and both offer a free download version.
"Spyware" is a general term for any application that has been installed on your PC (usually without your permission or knowledge) that is able to covertly gather and hack information back to a third party. This "information" may be a track of your Internet usage, personal details or what software you use etc,etc. All very useful things to know if you happen to be in the business of marketing products or services, for example!
This crap gets into your PC via the usual routes, ie; infected removable media (CD, floppy etc), bundled as a hidden component within apparently innocent software, Internet downloads or E-mail attachments etc.
In addition to anti-spyware software, using a higher browser privacy setting will also help keep the nosey parkers out (you may not be able to access some sites though with a high level setting or with "Cookies" dissabled)
One final tip. Junk E-Mail (spam) almost always has an invitation to "opt out" of any future mailing list by simply returning a blank mail. NEVER DO THIS as you will only confirm your e-mail address as being active, and worth spamming more!!
In addition to using anti-spyware software, anyone interested in making life more difficult (although sadly never 100%) for cyber snoopers and hackers might also consider using a personal "Firewall".
There are many available...Zone Alarm and Sygate Personal Firewall are popular, and both offer a free home use version.
(If you do install one of these products, take a look at the activity log after only a brief time connected to the Internet...You might be surprized by the level of two-way traffic activity, especially those packets that were "blocked" by the Firewall)
a while back i had a problem with this board corrupting leaving the top message threads viewable. i had inadvertantly installed some spyware by marketscore when i d/l'ed morpheus... (marketscore showed up in my task box as 'ossproxy' & ran every time i booted). i was able to remove the offending app through command.com