Free Spyware Help and Removal

The AntiMalware market has grown into a multi-Billion dollar industry yet  a number of solutions remain free to the public.  A large number of online forums offer free help, thanks to caring volunteers.  I have noticed that many of the free solutions have recently been coming under attack.  

One of the popular choices, AdAware was recently attacked by someone claiming “Ad-Aware is a poorly written anti-spyware program.  The story made a number of Blogs although some have removed their entry after Lavasoft fixed their specific problem.  I’m still a fan even though their Ad-Watch component rudely blocks WinPatrol  from running at startup.

The other most popular free program Spybot Search and Destroy is a masterpiece. The author Patrick Kolla deserves to be rich for the time and effort he’s put into this fine program.  I won’t repeat the specific messages left on the CNet’s Download.com reviews but I truly believe many were left by competitors with high priced AntiSpyware programs.

Another one of my favorites, Zone Alarm has also had its critics even though they make an excellent free version.  It’s not easy to find on their web site, but you can access it directly by clicking here.

The free WinPatrol program hasn’t received quite as many disapproving comments but we promote WinPatrol more as a multi function tool than just a AntiSpyware program. I was concerned about a comment in http://www.wilderssecurity.com that said “WinPatrol sucks”.   I was eventually able to trace it back to a company from India who recently tried to purchase WinPatrol but wasn’t willing to pay a reasonable price.

Microsoft support has come out with their own list of recommended programs and tips designed to heal your computer problems. Just check out http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;898583.