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Entered CNET Catalog: 12/04/2004
SKU: P410200D010
Manufacturer: Sunbelt Software
Manufacturer description
First the big Internet annoyance was spam. Now it is spyware! Why is this happening? There is big money in spyware, legitimate and for cyber criminals. Both wage a battle for your personal information, surfing and buying habits. There are Internet advertisers that want to know where you click, and the "Net Mafia" is trying to steal your identity and credit card info. Your personal computer has likely been infected with several spyware products and cannot get rid of these by itself. It needs help to find them, quarantine or delete them and then protect your PC from getting infected again. CounterSpy will do this for you! CounterSpy has Active Protection. You could call it a "spy-wall." There are "checkpoints" that are monitored in real-time for attempts to install spyware. A very high percentage will be blocked by CounterSpy.CNET editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 12/12/2007
In its first appearance, CounterSpy was the only antispyware product that correctly identified every piece of spyware in our current active-detection test. It did very well in active scanning, on-demand detection, and complete spyware removal. We also like its overall look and feel. CounterSpy also costs less than the competition (although it's not free, $20 is hard to beat), and includes antivirus protection, as well. Thus, we feel confident in awarding Sunbelt CounterSpy 2.0 our latest Editors' Choice for best antispyware product.
CounterSpy lists for $19.95 for a single user ($44.25 for three users) and runs on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows Vista. A full-function 15-day free trial is available and, unlike some other antispyware apps, the CounterSpy trial both detects and removes any spyware it finds. After our download, CounterSpy asked us to download an update, which subsequently required a reboot, a relatively minor annoyance.
Sunbelt's interface for CounterSpy is intuitive, and of all the antispyware products we tested in December 2007, it was the best. Its screens are clean with plenty of granularity for advanced users, yet not too much detail for those who like their applications simple.
In addition to providing antispyware and antivirus for one low price, we really like the added features within CounterSpy 2.0. For example, CounterSpy gives you instant feedback on any spyware it detects, allowing you to make an informed decision whether to remove it or not. There are also system tools that will suggest enhanced security settings for your PC, change your Start folder, remove browser history and cached files, and also fully erase (i.e. overwrite) deleted data files on your system so they can't be read again in the future.
For antispyware protection, CounterSpy 2.0 comes out on top in our current CNET antispyware tests. CNET Labs conducts three separate tests using spyware found to be bundled within free applications rejected by CNET Download.com (as part of its software policies, Download.com does not host applications containing known spyware). In the first test, active detection, CounterSpy 2.0 was the only product to discover all of the spyware; in the second, on-demand test, CounterSpy detected 80 percent of the spyware; and in the final, removal test, CounterSpy removed all traces from 70 percent of the spyware in the test.
We did not test nor did we include CounterSpy in our annual CNET antivirus roundup and therefore cannot comment on the effectiveness of the CounterSpy antivirus component.
Sunbelt supports its CounterSpy product well. There is a downloadable 118-page (PDF format) Users Guide (a rarity today, it seems) along with the usual Getting Started documentation, an online knowledgebase, and there's even toll-free telephone support (with the phone number clearly available on the Web site).
We were pleasantly surprised by Sunbelt CounterSpy 2.0. For $20, you can't get better antispyware protection.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
User Rating: 
1/10
Not Usable
Pros: Easy to install. Nice interface
Cons: Apparently takes control of the system to do a scan on the first boot of the day. Two days in a row since installing, I waiting over ten minutes then used the power button to do a reboot and bypass.
User Rating: 
10/10
Since you've already submitted a review so i donss
Pros: Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review.Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original sdkdsd
Cons: Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review.Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original sdkdsd
Updated on Dec 17, 2008Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review.
Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review.
Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review.
Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review.
Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review. Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review. Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your original review. Since you've already submitted a review for this product, this submission will be added as an update to your o
User Rating: 10/10
It is fast and the price is right
Pros: It takes no prisoners and is really fast !
Cons: I have found nothing I dislike
User Rating: 
3/10
Causes Too many problems
Pros: Not sure it has any pros
Cons: Causes too many software and hardware problems
User Rating: 10/10
Enterprise Strength for the Desktop
Pros: Easy to understand and maintain a clean system
Cons: Not enough people know about it.
User Rating: 1/10
Problems with Windows Media Edition!
Pros: Great Price!
Cons: Causes major software problems!
User Rating: 1/10
Program did not work for me
Pros: Customer service replied quickly other wise NONE
Cons: Product did not find all the spyware on my computer
User Rating: 
9/10
A great product
Pros: Clean interface; the best engine of the market
Cons: Updates takes forever
User Rating: 1/10
Complete incompatability with TrendMicro Internet Security Pro 2008
Pros: None if you own TrendMicro Internet Security Pro 2008
Cons: No way to achieve compatability with a CNET reviewed Antivirus and Internet Protection Suite
User Rating: 1/10
Sunbelt CounterSpy 2.0
Pros: It says that it INSTALLED.
Cons: Would NOT run. Tried loading it twice. Comes up with ERROR message as soon as I hit SCAN.
User Rating: 9/10
Good software
Pros: Inexpensiv e
Cons: None that I experience
User Rating: 9/10
Sunbelt CounterSpy 2.0 review
Pros: found every variety and removed them all cleanly.
Cons: first time update seemed to take a while
User Rating: 
8/10
Great Protection - slow updates
Pros: Rock solid protection - intuitive infterface
Cons: updating definitions is much slower than SpySweeper
My only complaints with CounterSpy has to do with the definition updates being slow - much slower than what I experienced with SpySweeper. I also had problems updating these during the initial definition update - on all three of my pc's it ran for over an hour only to fail. If this happens to you then go to the File menu and select the Download Full Definition option - worked fine on all three - and I run Vista Ultimate, XP Home and Windows 2000 Pro. Rock solid on all three.
User Rating: 9/10
updates are slow
Pros: Finds the bag guys
Cons: Updates are brutally slow
User Rating: 10/10
Absolutely Great Protection
Pros: Easy to use, Very efficient, Useful toolz, First class security, Unbeatable, Great value for money
Cons: Updates slower than competitors, Interface could be more graphically pleasing
Choose between `novice` or `advanced` to open up configuration settings.
Lets you enable animation and debugging, PC checkup helps tighten security, PC scan helps manage your settings, history cleaner, secure file removal, and much more including wizards to help the novice and a spyware service for reporting new malware and at the price I cant praise it enough.
User Rating: 
7/10
I have no problems with the program
Pros: It has performed up to expectations
Cons: None at this time and have used it for 6 months
User Rating: 9/10
Among the pack leaders !
Pros: Does the job well
Cons: haven't found any yet !
User Rating: 9/10
fantastic protection
Pros: very good decting trojans & viruses
Cons: full scan was extremely slow
User Rating: 7/10
not for users with 56k modem
Pros: good scanner
Cons: updates to big
