Getting RID of Ad/Spywre!

[hottytoddy]

Anyone know a good program to download to get rid of adware? I have something annoying that is taking over my homepage.

[Kevin]

A combination of SpyBot Search & Destroy and Ad Aware is what I use -- along with ZoneAlarm as a software firewall. Together, they do a decent job.

Throw in a good blockup stopper like the google toolbar and you'll have it made.

Your best bet is to just stop clicking on banner ads and popups.

Ever since one of those spy craps decided to eff up my PC, I've made it a ritual to run SpyBot and AdAware at least once a day both at home and at work.

If you do DL the above programs, make sure you do it from the original source, because doing otherwise might eff up your PC even more. I know that the URLs have been posted here on GC before.

[carnation]

This will sound weird but I have to get to work quickly and don't have time to search, so:

Do a search under the username mrblonde and go to his post about "how the hell do I get this off my computer". There are direct links to those programs on that thread.

[decadence]

Originally posted by hottytoddy:
Anyone know a good program to download to get rid of adware? I have something annoying that is taking over my homepage.

Hi Ginger,

I'd recommend Spybot - Search & Destroy, and also Ad-Aware by Lavasoft. I prefer Spybot, but it's worth running Ad-Aware after, too; as they sometimes find different things the other doesn't.

Once installed, remember to firstly use their online update feature (/download new reference file feature) to make sure it catches the latest threats.

Any problems, PM me.
[list=1][*]Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.3 (official site) [*]Ad-aware 6 (official site - Lavasoft) [*]Microsoft Windows Update site (for downloading security patches for Internet explorer)[/list=1]

[Dionysus]

Ever since this "search bar" has been installed at the bottom of my screen, my computer has been acting very weird. I can't get rid of it either.

[decadence]

Run both the programs above with updates, and comment back if the problem continues.

[jharb]

I run both AdAware and Spybot Search & Destroy, but currently I am getting pop-ups off of random sites (even GC!). I've tried going through and uninstalling anything and everything that might be spyware related but I can't figure it out.

All this is quite annoying!

[Kevin]

Originally posted by jharb
I run both AdAware and Spybot Search & Destroy, but currently I am getting pop-ups off of random sites (even GC!). I've tried going through and uninstalling anything and everything that might be spyware related but I can't figure it out.

All this is quite annoying!

You need a popup blocker.

Here's the Google toolbar/popup blocker.

http://toolbar.google.com/

[jharb]

I just don't want a tool bar...I don't even have anything other than the address bar & the menu up at the top of my Internet Explorer!

I know I'm stubborn

I remember someone posted a program that clicks off of certain pop-up ads though...I forget what it is!

[Xylochick216]

Pop-Up Stopper Pro is great for getting rid of pop-ups. I got mine from download.com. All you have to do is hold down the control key when you want it to allow a pop-up (for certain email sites and flash sites). I've had it for over a year and I've had zero pop-ups.

I agree on Ad-Aware. It finds a lot.

[decadence]

Originally posted by decadence: Run both the programs above with updates, and comment back if the problem continues.

Originally posted by jharb: I run both AdAware and Spybot Search & Destroy, but currently I am getting pop-ups off of random sites (even GC!). I've tried going through and uninstalling anything and everything that might be spyware related but I can't figure it out.
All this is quite annoying!

Well then, we'd better get it completely fixed then, hadn't we!

Download this: HijackThis

It's a zip file, unzip it to your desktop (or wherever you like) so you can then click on the extracted file and run HijackThis.
HijackThis will enable you to remove any instructions put in your computer (in the registry etc) to redirect to certain pages, run popup programs (browser hijackers etc). You can also damage your system using it if you click remove on something that SHOULDN'T be removed because it's a part of Windows, say.

HijackThis is an advanced tool. Not to be used in place of Spybot S&D or Ad-aware - this is a step after that, which isn't necessary for all users. There is a tutorial on how to use it at link, but if you're at all unsure or it looks complex then feel free to just click the Save Log button and PM me the contents and I'll take a look at it and tell you what's safe to remove. It WILL be able to deal with the residual traces of any trojans/hijackers you have there jharb.

I'd recommend you PM me that log, we should be able to get everything fixed no problem.
Hope that helps.

- decadence

[AUDeltaGam]

Originally posted by decadence
Run both the programs above with updates, and comment back if the problem continues.

When you said that, I realized I hadn't updated my AdAware in quite some time. So I ran it, got 2 files, updated it and found 70 more

Thanks for the reminder!

[DWAlphaGam]

I had this problem a few weeks ago, and HijackThis was the only thing that would get rid of it. Just make sure you follow the directions EXACTLY, or else you will seriously screw up your computer. (I only recommend using HijackThis after you've used SpyBot and Ad-Aware and they don't get rid of your problem.)

[PhiPsiRuss]

Originally posted by hottytoddy
Anyone know a good program... to get rid of adware?

MacOS X. But you'll need a real computer to run it.