User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
As long as they stay on top of updates, good codeby rainmaneverson - June 9, 2009
Pros: Integrated; small footprint for speed and registry tentacles; does considerable work for being a "background" process
Cons: Could (should?) be kept current via WinUpdate; otherwise, how to keep (stay ahead of) up with the mal-mutts?
Review:
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Good Anti Spywareby emperordarius - November 16, 2007
Pros: Good Protection, Doesn't interfer with famous Anti-Viruses (KApserksy,NOD32), Light, occupies tiny space
Cons: Cannot Be a stand alone antispyware, misses some spyware
Review: Doesn't interfere with Anti viruses and is light for the system. Good choice
User Rating: 1.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Is it really working?by ceceily - May 27, 2007
Pros: not a CPU hog
Cons: Hasn't detected any spware in 2 months???
Review: I have had windows defender since early March and it has not detected any spyware as of yet, although Bitdefender and Lava's Ad-aware has.
User Rating: 2.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Not the best, but shows promise.by jgray152 - April 3, 2007
Pros: Interface is very easy to use and gets updated with windows updates
Cons: Finds very very little if anything.
Review: I have tested a few different malware scanners and removers. Windows Defender finds almost nothing, and when it does, its usually something that I could care less about. The items I want it to find which slows windows down to the point where most would say, wipe it out, WD does not find.
The integration, interface and features seem good and shows promise, but with most anything that Microsoft comes out with for the first time, it will take time before WD is worth recomending.
I have removed many types of malware from many types of computers using many types of malware scanners and removers and not once did any of the removers make windows run slower. They may not have been able to remove a few things but always told you what and where the malware was.
XoftSpy SE is ranked number 1 in my chart.
Adaware and Spybot usually will not find anything after running Xoftspy which would usually find many items, WD finds nothing.
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Its useless. Get Spybotby si666ix - March 9, 2007
Pros: Free but thats it.
Cons: It doesn`t stop anything.
Review: I have this and Adaware and Spybot on my computer. I run Windows Defender and EVERYTIME its states my system is clean, it has never said anything other than CLEAN. I then ran Adaware and it picked up 10 items of tracking cookies, which to me is spyware. I then ran Spybot which picked up the following;Avenue A.Inc and Double Click.Now I ask myself why? is it that useless or, what is worse is that I have never ever had Avenue Inc on my computer before, at until I decided to try Windows Defender. So did they put it there and do they not want it found? is it actually Windows spyware. When I remove Avenue Inc then all my full drop down list of web sites I go to strangely vanishes and I have to start again. I would exercise caution using it as I definitely think it drops you spyware. How the editor of this site can rate it so highly is beyond me and probably others. Users rate the two together as 80% and 20% for using Spybot, we all can`t be wrong. It makes me wonder if the ed has actually used it. Keep off Defender if you really do want spyware picked up. Also when I removed it I had a cart load of registry entries to get rid of, they should be cleaned out also, Microsoft could easily do it so why not? I do not trust them in the least bit.
User Rating: 2.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
windows defender looks good but im at a lossby kizmark - March 4, 2007
Pros: nice user interface
Cons: limited help
Review: after reading all the reviews i could find on the subject, i have windows defender final release installed. but it seems to have disabled my screensavers. i couldn't find any related help in its HELP nor at microsoft. can anyone point me to the right path?
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
A piece of junkby tony.brown - February 19, 2007
Pros: You can disable it.
Cons: It disables your soundcard and enything else it does not recognise.
Review: This software expresses the view that anything on your machine that Microsoft does not recognise should be disabled. It can be as simple as the sound card that was installed by Dell. It did just that to my Dell laptop while it was engaged in professional sound recording. I have no use for a defence system that disables the normal functioning of my computer. It would be simple for Microsoft to take a snapshot of my computer as a reference point and proceed from there to defend it.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Best free spyware remover periodby rocko719 - November 19, 2006
Pros: nice interface, thorough scanning
Cons: a liitle slow but still the best
Review: Didn't actually download this one on my own it came as a package on one of my updates. This product is probably the absolute best spyware/malicious removal tool I've seen. To me this shows that Microsoft really cares about its uses, to allow a program like this for free what else could be better. The Process is a little slow when doing a full scan, But it have saved my computer many times and has actually made it a litte faster. I would recommend this product to anyone.
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Don't forget to use AdAware!by Rob10 - October 12, 2006
Pros: Nice interface
Cons: Doesn't prevent or find spyware
Review: It's set for "Automatic Updates". It's set to scan my computer at 6:00 AM every morning. It is set for "Real-time Protection". Then why does AdAware keep finding Spyware?! And not just MRU lists, but tracking cookies and occasional Trojan Loggers! Get real Microsoft!
User Rating: 2.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Doesn't clean...by Odin's Eye - September 15, 2006
Pros: Easy to install
Cons: Not sure if it is working properly
Review: I have been using this product for a couple of months. Until the other day, it never detected any spyware, although LavaSoft would detect and clean low risk intrusions. The other day, Defender identifies what it calls a high risk worm. I prompt Defender to delete the spyware. Defender complies and indicates the the spyware has been deleted successfully.
However, after starting a game, the same message comes up indicating that this same worm has been detected. Apparently, it is residing in the command file under a restore function.
I also am running Spybot and Zone Alarm antispyware, but at this time, only Defender is detecting this worm. Spybot and ZA detected it initially, but indicated a successful clean.
Anyone else run into this situation? If so, how did you finally get rid of the worm?
Thanks
User Rating: 3.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great Spyware Protectionby tonyron227 - September 1, 2006
Pros: Seems to do a great job.
Cons: Requires updates from Microsoft Updates.
Review: Program works great protecting against spyware but needs weekly updates downloaded from Microsoft Updates. This sometimes does not happen automatically.
User Rating: 3.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Still in Betaby fullphaser - July 27, 2006
Pros: active firewall, easy to use
Cons: auto deletion, choppy interface
Review: I have been using the virtual plethora of anti spyware products out there for atleast the last 3 years, from adware se personal, to spybot search and destory, and all those small ones in between,
Each has its advantages and disadvantages, but when I heard about MS releasing their own I was enthralled, First it was about time, and second who would know their own system better than microsoft.
So I picked this one up, first major difficulty is that you probalby are going to one IE to download (not sure if this still applies on download.com but it used to redirect you to the microsoft site) which would require you pass the WGA inspection
and it will find invalid computers and call foul. So you have to be on a valid windows machine, and it has to be XP or ME. I figured thats not to bad, most folks have that going on, so I continued, download was pretty small, the wizard was pretty easy to understand and the program immediatly went into scan
Well it does find things, and it finds major things, but in comparison with the way that Adware, Spybot and others scan this product still has a way to go, the interface can look choppy, I could have sworn there were more administration options in the last beta, and worse yet is that it automatically deletes things that it doesn't like (if it considers them a high enough theat) now what it did delete on me, had I not had knowledge of it, should have been deleted (a dameware session)
The product provides an active firewall, which not many anti-spyware products do, and that alone should be enough to get this one just for the active firewall, coupled with a stable build it should do fine, and with spynet and when it goes not beta I am sure things will get better, but right now it is only the active firewall that I am intersted in.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great security appby stevent1992 - July 24, 2006
Pros: Ease of use, works in the background and provides real time protection and removes threatening software.
Cons: Probably sets too many restore points for each individual scan and probably is harsh on legitimate third party software like the editor said.
Review: Windows Defender is great and that’s not because I am a Microsoft lover but it has protected my system from all those malicious software, ad-ware, spyware and all junk-ware while I don’t use Norton antivirus or such Windows Defender works in the background and scans continuously and if your system does come under threat it will warn you and prompt you to remove the threat unlike most software like Webroot Spysweeper and Registry Mechanic that make you buy the product in order to remove it but Windows Defender will remove the threat with hardly any problems.
My problem with Windows Defender is that each scan of defender creates a restore point this tends to waste restore point space rather than leaving some restore points for example if installed software and wanted that restore point.
Seriously I haven’t had any problems with defender and for the 5 months upon using it has run smoothly, I would recommend this to anyone who doesn’t have time to keep their system clean and safe, Defender will do that for you unlike Spybot Search & Destroy ( Also useful ) though. So if you don’t know nothing about security apps this is a must have.
Although I wouldn’t think that is absolutely best software but is handy and useful.
And if you install some bad software and Windows Defender detects it and removes it you probably be thankful and probably say “Gee If I didn’t have this software my PC would be a real mess thank God for Windows Defender�
Overall it’s great and kept my computer good and safe.
User Rating: 0.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Sell it back to giantby smart technician - April 20, 2006
Pros: looks goods
Cons: doesn't work as good as it looks
Review: I would like to comment that this program is most definitley not better than ad-aware
and spybot
also free
best spyware removal got to www.webroot.com
spysweeper rocks
Updated
not only is this program totally useless and a waste of resources it is designed by a billion dollar company and works like all of there other products
many incosistent creations reformatting often slow operations f%$@ing trash
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Better when it was owned by Giant Softwareby Smart Tech2 - April 20, 2006
Pros: Nothing I can think of
Cons: Doesn't find anything
Review: Ok...Micrisift Antispyware Beta 1 was ok for the Advanced Tools...but the Beta 2, What was Microsoft thinking. This program finds squat. If you want to install and splurge a little cash for, BUY SPYSWEEPER before its too late.
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Does it actually DO anything?by weirving - April 19, 2006
Pros: Transparent to user; Murphy-proof. <Thumbs up for user-friendliness)
Cons: Doesn't seem to actually detect spyware. <DOH! for being deaf, blind and stupid>
Review: In addition to Windows Defender, I have used Adaware Personal Edition, Spybot-Search and Destroy, and lately, I decided to get serious and actually PAY for anti-spyware software; I got and installed Spyware Doctor.
I guess in this case, I actually am getting what I paid for; Spyware Doctor has been by a substantial margin the most effective of the tools I have tried thus far. It has detected and removed everything that Adaware and Spybot has, plus lots more that they overlooked.
Windows Defender has occasionally raised its ugly pop-up head to ask me about a new application I have just installed - asking me if I should allow it or not. Now, doesn't that assume that I know what is spyware and what isn't? And if I already know that, why do I need Windows Defender? I mean, why would I deliberately install spyware on my machine?
According to Defender's own scanning history, in one month of daily scans, no instance of spyware or malware has been detected by Windows Defender. NOT ONE!! What's more, to my knowledge NOT ONCE has Defender updated its database, whereas Spyware Doctor auto-updates daily.
I even tried using it alone on my "crash-test dummy" computer, without any other anti-spyware software (so it was totally on its own), and in over a month, NOT ONE event has been detected. Yet, when I installed Spyware Doctor on it, a veritable panoply of crap was unearthed.
So, what is this thing doing running in the background, using processor cycles and hard drive space? As far as I can tell, it does nothing useful whatsoever.
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
If its MS it has to be Good?... I don't think so anymore!!!by VideoTAPeD - April 15, 2006
Pros: Its free (for now) and its SO CUTE!!
Cons: Its almost worthless... I'd feel guilty paying MS for it
Review: After reading reviews installed it on 2 test machines It did find CNNIC (a chinese program I DO want removed)claimed to remove it, changed homepage to Windows Security, and then found it again... and the cycle continues. It also wants to uninstall my Norton's antivirus... Fat Chance!!! I'll stick to AdAware and SpyBot both of which actually find AND remove SPYWARE. I had tried the original AntiSpyware beta... eventually it's log file ate up over 20GB of HD ocasionally finding but never removing any spyware... Typical MS Windblows software.
User Rating: 2.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
not updatingby timelesslicker99 - March 24, 2006
Pros: it's just as good as any spyware
Cons: there is a problem with software updates
Review: I've been using this software for almost 2 months now. the first time it prompted me for udates, it said "Windows Defender definitions haven't been updated in 21 days." But when I udated it, it still said the same thing and counting the days even though it's engine and definitions been updated 3 times already successfully. So,I uninstalled and reinstalled it and even updated it and did a quick scan. To my surprise it said it hasn't been updated for 58 days. I might uninstall this and try another antispyware. It sucks, you know?!!!
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Best Spyware program on the market, and freeby lbut - March 4, 2006
Pros: Quick, thorough search
Cons: Prompts do not give enough information
Review: Excellent program, once you install and run the first scan you won't even know it's working but it's still there! Scans are very quick, careful about the options you get as you might end up accidentally deleting your programs that are considered spyware! Download it and give it a try; it's great.
User Rating: 1.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Hard to useby ndmmxiaomayi - February 26, 2006
Pros: Scanning is thourough and the interface is simple
Cons: It's hard to use, took me quite long to find how to update the definitions
Review: The whole installation is simple, just follow the instructions. After updating the definitions, I did a scan. The scan is thorough, as like the previous Beta. The interface is clean, very simple. However, it isn't really user-friendly. I went through the whole application to find updates, only to know through their Help topics is updated through Windows Update.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
dont leave security to third-party/rate developersby boohoo7 - February 26, 2006
Pros: easy, simply, just-works, trusted source, FREE
Cons: not yet in final form
Review: I've used spybot and ad-aware for years. They both have the feeling of skunkworks projects. Its time for a real professional to protect my pc.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Added features are a big plus.by casecorgis - February 26, 2006
Pros: Intuitive interface. Ease of use. It was able to clean know spyware from an infected PC where Spybot and Adaware didn't.
Cons: Still from Microsoft.
Review: This is one of the best apps to have the Microsoft label. That may be because Microsoft didn't create it originally. In addtion to being an excellent spyware program, it offers the bonus feature of being able to tweak your startup. I use to use Mike Lin's Startup CPL, which is outstanding. I know pretty much just use Defender. It gives a little more detail on each application than Startup CPL.
User Rating: 3.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Can't Run on pirated windows xp!by waterdrop - February 21, 2006
Pros: good program, effective of finding spyware
Cons: cant run on pirated versions of windows xp, still BETA,
Review: Altough its still in BETA, its a good program, just make sure your using a legal version of windows otherwise they wont let you install it.
User Rating: 2.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
This spyware starts ot by spying.by Renegade Knight - February 21, 2006
Pros: I never got that far...
Cons: Spies from the moment you click install.
Review: I read good things about this software. Finally I took the plunge and downloaded it. When I went to install it though the first thing it wanted to do was confirm I had a legitimate version of Windows. It at least asked me if it could. I said no and it didn't install. End of story. What kind of spyware starts out by reporting back to HQ the status of your computers operating system? Shouldn't it focus on actual spyware instead of being that spyware?
Maybe once you install it, this is the greatest thing since sliced bread. But with that kind of install why risk it? There is other software that is content to seek out and zap spyware and does it as good as this and does it without the need to do more than confirm it can run in the version of windows you have rather than report on what it thinks (would it ask me if my legit Windows XP was legit if for whatever reason it decided it wasn't?) my "Pirate" status is?
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
SUCKS; no goodby edwardlee2708 - February 21, 2006
Pros: None, none, none
Cons: This product hasn't updated within 26 days to
Review: my Windows XP sp2 device.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
A better product than beta 1by SteveLS68 - February 21, 2006
Pros: Auto-update works better; simpler interface; more thorough scan engine; doesn't clutter up the TEMP folder with files, unlike MSAS
Cons: no systray icon
Review: IMO, Windows Defender, along with Spybot S&D and Ad-Aware SE, are the 3 best anti-spyware products available now. And they're all free. Unlike the other two products, Windows Defender has free auto-updates.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Almost perfect!by okelococnet - February 20, 2006
Pros: Detect anything, low cpu usage
Cons: Manual scans takes more than 10 minutes
Review:
User Rating: 1.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Microsoft antispyware never finds anything!by maamar_55 - February 20, 2006
Pros: userfriendly, has an excellent userinterface well organized
Cons: never caught a single thing on my computer while others caught tons of spyware
Review: Although this program has a lovely look and is very easy to navigate, I could never catch spyware and adware from my computer. Many other programs I downloaded from cnet did catch a good number of spyware. Other than that, It is a nice program and scans very quickly. I just wished it did its job!
User Rating: 3.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
People Are Amazingby swannyb - February 20, 2006
Pros: Scans spyware, nice built in interface
Cons: Doesn't find all spyware
Review: It's funny, I love reading all these reviews. You get the people who love MS and rate it insane and the haters who cut it down. The thing with Spyware (at least from an IT professional's standpoint) is that most of it comes from going to unreputable sites, point being if you go to online po*n sites all day, don't be mad if whatever spyware product you use doesn't work. As much as we want to tweak the software, make it better, etc; we also need to start doing a better job of educating users or this problem will continue forever and we will always be playing the cat and mouse game with spyware. Just my 2 cents, about all my opinion is worth in cyberspace I suppose.
User Rating: 3.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
People Are Amazingby swannyb - February 20, 2006
Pros: Scans spyware, nice built in interface
Cons: Doesn't find all spyware
Review: It's funny, I love reading all these reviews. You get the people who love MS and rate it insane and the haters who cut it down. The thing with Spyware (at least from an IT professional's standpoint) is that most of it comes from going to unreputable sites, point being if you go to online po*n sites all day, don't be mad if whatever spyware product you use doesn't work. As much as we want to tweak the software, make it better, etc; we also need to start doing a better job of educating users or this problem will continue forever and we will always be playing the cat and mouse game with spyware. Just my 2 cents, about all my opinion is worth in cyberspace I suppose.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Overall, not much is missing. What's CNET thinking??by NickMets7 - February 18, 2006
Pros: Great at what it's supposed to do.
Cons: Takes a long time to do a proper scan; memory hog
Review: This edition is definitely better than some of the other spyware apps I've used in the past. The scan is perhaps one of the most comprehensive scans avilable from free anit-spyware software. It found stuff that the previous edition of MS Anti-Spyware didn't find, as well as the Netscape built-in Spyware scanner.
Now, it's obviously not perfect. If it's doing a scan, you can forget pretty much about high-end multi-tasking. There is a lack of user control, and at the same time too little automatic adjustability options. But the entire thing is great, and I'm looking forward to how well it'll protect my PC in the future.
Updated
This program is a great all-around piece of software, a real good job by Microsoft. It's not as strict as other Anti-Spyware programs, and believe me, I've tested and run a whole lot of them before deciding which ones to keep, adn which ones to uninstall.
Other programs are too strict, and although Windows Defender scans don't always come up with 1000's of items, maybe that's because it's doing its job. Other programs do turn up more items, but 99% of them are just tracking cookies, and for me, 100% of them were from trusted sites.
Even though there's no taskbar icon (one shows up when you haven't run a scan in 3 days) it IS working.
For the million people who "can't update spyware definitions" --> You can do this via Microsoft Update, or in the HELP options, click "About WD" and then click "Check for Update." If you have Automatic Updates turned on, it'll notify you approximately every 3 or 4 days to install new updates for WD.
- Nick
User Rating: 3.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Good, but not perfectby N.K. Clark - February 16, 2006
Pros: Very easy to install and operate, with minimal impact on system performance -- even on an old, underpowered computer
Cons: Does not catch everything
Review: Installation was fast and problem free. The "quick" scan took 9 minutes on a 1.8 GHz Pentium-4 with only 256 mb RAM -- not too bad.
The only flaw so far has been that Windows Defender Beta 2 does not seem to detect any adware-linked tracking cookies. Beta 1 had the same feature/glitch. After a five-minute romp through some of the more notorious sources of spyware, Windows Defender detected no suspicious spyware. Spybot detected and cleaned 9 items, all of them browser tracking cookies.
If you use this product, don't uninstall Spybot or other anti-spyware software.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Ad-Aware/Spybot Replacementby mvdyk03 - February 15, 2006
Pros: Excellent integration with XP-SP2, Outlook 2003, and IE7-B2 (well, we really should expect this, right?)
Cons: Well, it could do a full scan more quickly and without taking as much system resources, but it is still a Beta
Review: This is an excellent product thusfar, and the Software Explorer feature (basically, a msconfig shortcut with a nicer UI) is very nice. This will shortcut and even eliminate the need for what has historically been the dynamic duo of spyware -- Ad-Aware and Spybot. I'm loathe to admit it, but nice work M$.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
So far its been pretty good.by snharden - February 14, 2006
Pros: Not Available
Cons: Not Available
Review: After about a dozen scans with beta 2 I'm pretty impressed. I didn't have any problems or was any third party software removed that microsoft didn't recognize.
The product installation was a breeze and it saved me the worry of uninstalling the beta 1 as usual per microsoft.
Just go to tools then general settings and check signature default and it won't remove anything until you give it permission.
IMHO I'd say microsoft is definitely headed in the right direction with this product, hopefully they will enable the removal of claria and gator but as of yet I've seen no mention whether beta 2 does or not. All in all a good product getting better.
I think it should be made available to everyone after all its free so why not microsoft. Give everyone a fair go with this new beta.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
catches spyware,seamless,great info about running processesby ruykava - February 14, 2006
Pros: Not Available
Cons: Not Available
Review: well, i installed it and immediately it found spyware which adaware missed. i'm not sure if there might in future be spyware MS misses which adaware will catch, so am keeping both together.
it is so seamless: i would never even know it was there if, well, i didn't know. also, runs as a service so it protects ALL the time, even if no user is logged on.
powerful viewer for startup programs and running programs: very nice to have a long description of each program, and sorted by publisher. simply brilliant. beats Task Manager and msconfig by miles and miles.
all in all, very promising for a Beta 2 and can't wait for the final!
User Rating: 0.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Did not catch anything.by streckfu - February 14, 2006
Pros: Not Available
Cons: Not Available
Review: I've tried this on several occasions. It consistantly misses adware caught by AdAware or Spybot run afterward.
I do not recommend it at all.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
GREAT! ONLY TWO ISSUESby tenaciouse1080 - December 30, 2005
Pros: EVERYTHING!
Cons: bad user interface, long scanning
Review: this is a great spyware remover!
i have used adaware, spybot, and spysweeper 4.5, and even with all of them at maximum protection, msantispy found 4 critical/severe spywares that were in my computer that the other 3 spyware removers didnt detect!
its not a memory hog like spysweeper, so my computer starts up much faster than before
the only downside to this program is its poorly placed user interface, it takes awhile getting used to. also, the scan times are long but it doesnt bother me since i usually scan while performing other tasks anyway
great spyware remover!
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Near perfect anti-spyware tool; worry freeby codeHammer7 - December 8, 2005
Pros: Catches spyware not in definition file, simple interface, free, System Checkpoints for advanced customization
Cons: Still in Beta version
Review: The Best there is. I have used several anti-spyware programs for a year, but after I got this one I have never changed since. I have reccommended this program to friends who thought the same. It catches stuff my other apps won't. Only drawback is an error in the System Checkpoint list - you can't re-enable previously disabled checkpoints. But that has never bothered me.
I have used it for over six months, and I have had no spyware to date. It updates automatically, runs in the background, and gives me small, unintrusive notifications when it blocks or allows programs. I might rate it a "10" if the finished version fixes the quirks.
User Rating: 3.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
basicaly good and the price is rightby crp1 - November 18, 2005
Pros: works off hours
Cons: does not remember
Review: Finds on a daily basis the same threat and evan though I request it to be removed the next day it will be back. Does not remember and block even though it lists it as a severe threat. Will shut off programs ie internet as it starts up. Updates need to consider this option? It contacts anti spyware but does not seem to do any thing about it. Probably a con of being part of a mamouth corporation it is not a priority.may have better luck with otherspyware programs that you have listed in your review. Any comments?
User Rating: 1.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Mediocre qualityby jasmantle - November 18, 2005
Pros: real-time monitoring
Cons: Doesn't play nicely with other applications
Review: I installed this program on a Windows 2000 system, and the first thing it did was destroy the TCP/IP stack. A total deletion (using regedit) of TCP/IP, and re-installation, was required. Of course, since there was no Internet connectivity I had to find another computer to determine the resolution from Microsoft's Knowledge Base.
Don't use this product. Use Ad-Aware or Spybot (or both) instead. When AntiSpyware is no longer a Beta release then have another look at it.
Philosophical question: Instead of developing an antispyware product, why doesn't Microsoft re-deploy these developers to fix the exploits?
User Rating: 0.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
AS a tech I have to uninstall this software as it slows down peoples pc'sby dreamsistah - November 18, 2005
Pros: there are none.....
Cons: it slows down the pc and also is hard to remove
Review: does not recomment this at all....usually has to reformat clients pc once they install this....
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great Product!by kaleenab - October 25, 2005
Pros: Works well for deleting spyware
Cons: I Cant find anything wrong with it
Review: I have had this product on my computer for a couple of months. I use this as well as Norton's, Hijack This, and Spybot Search and Destroy to delete all of my spyware. (I've had it on my computer really bad before) This is a really easy interface to use, and it's a very straightforeward product. This product is by far the best out of all that I use.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Very Impressive, removed spyware found but not removed by Norton @ Adaware programs.by grlit - August 29, 2005
Pros: Had to run 3 scans to toally remove the malware from all location in my desktop, but it cleaned it all out.
Cons: Had to use Systemworks 2005 Optomizer after 3 scans, it relaly scattered the files on the hard drive.
Review: I am impressed with the program, there is malware found by Adaware SE Personal not found by MSN Beta or by Spybot S&D. Each of these programs seems to be able to locate servere or nigligible risks at times that the other two programs do not, but I can only praise MSN Antispy Beta1, it removed the malware that Norton detected but could not remove and that Adaware and Spybot could not remove entirely. I recommend this program, especially since it is currently available at no cost.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Best one out there - tried four(4) different productsby ITSC_William - August 9, 2005
Pros: Works much faster than the WebRoot Product
Cons: Newest version requires Legal Microsoft OS Verification
Review: Superb Product for all my XP-OS machines including the 64Bit processor machines. This is the newest beta version that "kick's butt" on the WebRoot Product. It runs perfectly on the most resource intensive workstations. Be prepared though, the product update is one of the first MicroSoft products to be linked to the newest Microsoft OS license verification system. Initially, it may take an extra step to validate your MicroSoft XP License during the installation process. My stuff is legally purchased and registered but "international software pirates should be very surprised."
User Rating: 2.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
No support for windows 9Xby forsunny - August 5, 2005
Pros: Don't know. Can't use it. I have windows 98SE as my OS.
Cons: Does not work on windows 9X.
Review: Microsoft has stopped supporting windows 98 and older operating systems, but now even newer applications such microsoft antispyware are not supported on it. Looks like microsoft will finally force me to upgrade to their slower, bulkier, more resource hogging pricy new OS. Or, may be I should look to giving up on microsoft altogether, and look to adopting alternate OSes such as Linux.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
A well-designed tool with great automation and low system impact.by napdynmite - July 17, 2005
Pros: Solid performance, easy updates, nice interface, little effect on system resources, some nice extras
Cons: Slightly less thorough than Spybot
Review: I really like Microsoft AntiSpyware and I install it, along with Spybot on most machines I clean up. I really like it's update tool and appreciate the straightforward, attractive interface, which looks more professional than Spybot. I still prefer to run Spybot along with it, since Spybot cleans more stuff, but I think this is a great little package.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Definetely the best out thereby JoboTheHobo1213 - July 17, 2005
Pros: 91% acuracy
Cons: eh slow a little
Review: man this thing is awesome, id been using Norton but it slowed my comp too much so i switched to this (which is supposed to have the best percentage of detected spyware. The second i ran a scan it found like twenty serious threats Norton hadnt even realized were there.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Works ALMOST perfectlyby D4RK3N3D H4CK3R - July 17, 2005
Pros: Detects most spyware/adware and has real time protection for free
Cons: Has conflict with AOL (block cusor as mouse), can also bring old/slow systems down somewhat
Review: If you are looking for a free antispyware with real time scanning, this is a product you will want. However, like most people, keep Ad-Aware and SpyBot on your computer also as adware can be tricky to remove.
User Rating: 2.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Not as good as othersby ~Azrael~ - July 17, 2005
Pros: easy to use, Free (for now).
Cons: Lavasoft's Adware will find items that microsoft will miss. It will not be free after 2005.
Review:
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
works as advertisedby psu68usa - July 13, 2005
Pros: easy to use
Cons: not aware of any
Review: after the beta, if Microsoft provides this as a free program...use it!
User Rating: 1.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Sounded good - but didn't work.by s.roeder - July 10, 2005
Pros: Worked seamlessly with updates and scheduled searches.
Cons: Never found a single file and slowed my computer down to a crawl.
Review: I was enthusiastic when I first read about this product. After installing it and setting up regular scans of my computer I sat back and waited to see what it could do. I was disappointed.
The Microsoft Beta never found a single file. In addition, it slowed down my computers processing speed to a crawl. I couldn't understand why my computer was processing even the simplest commands so slowly until I removed the beta and my system went back to normal. Stick to Ad-Aware and Spybot. At least they find something and don't corrupt your computer.
User Rating: 0.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware Beta1by Arthur Billy - June 21, 2005
Pros: Nice Interface, Easy to use
Cons: Does not find any Spyware at all
Review: "I have installed Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware Beta and have used it several times. It takes about from 10 to 16 minutes to scan the C: hard drive and not does not find any spyware at all.
By comparison Spybot Search & Destroy took about 4 min.36 secs. to scan the identical C: Drive and it found spyware I then run AdAware SE Plus and it also found spyware however I did not clock the scan duration.
I have used Spybot Search & Destroy and AdAware SE Plus for a long time and they have always found Spyware.
Since Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware Beta1 is not finding any Spyware at all I can only conclude that is not doing its job.
Has anyone else experienced the same thing that I have
Arthur Billy
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
So far so goodby mlevit - June 21, 2005
Pros: Fast, looks good and easy to use
Cons: None so far
Review: This program right after installing takes you through an easy to use wizard which sets up the whole program for you.
Ive done some scans and it has found some spyware that hadn't been found before. The program has some nice features for files found, like remove, quarintine, or ignore.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Very Good! Removed all spyware from my laptopby kkannan - June 20, 2005
Pros: Nice Options
Cons: Did not find any
Review:
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
MS AntiSpyware found registry entries and files that none of the other products caught.by peterawest - June 20, 2005
Pros: MS AntiSpyware didn't just find the files and entries, it removed them too.
Cons: I found nothing negative about MS AntiSpyware.
Review: Nice product that does what it says it will do. I like that it also provides on-going protection stopping new spyware from installing.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Good right now, promises to be better.by Haggan - June 20, 2005
Pros: Good interface, good scanning time
Cons: Memory hog, not auto updates yet.
Review: I know it's in beta, but updates are needed, new spyware is out there daily. The program itself is kinda a memory hog, but that's become the norm for a MS product. Aside from those issues, it's become my spyware killer product of choice.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
I Like it better than Spybot or Adawareby Hedge - June 20, 2005
Pros: Runs Quitely, Nice User interface, Set it and Forget It, FREE
Cons: Can't think of any.
Review: Runs smoothly, nice user interface, doesn't overwelm you with pop up notifications.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Does the job quietly and automaticallyby dreward - June 20, 2005
Pros: Scheduled nightly run and real time protection
Cons: Slow to perform scan
Review: Hard to beat because it runs so seamlessly
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
cookie control neededby trkwkr179 - June 10, 2005
Pros: quick scanning, finds all spyware, does a good job finding tracking cookies.
Cons: resident scanning does not scan cookies unless a scan of system is in progress.
Review: microsoft just needs to improve the features to scan and remove tracking cookies on it's own for active resident.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
What's going on with update screen?by qquirks - June 6, 2005
Pros: Fast scanning, easy to use interface, glad you can shut down when not on net and take off startup menu
Cons: update screen disappears when performing update on my WinXP SP2 machine, slow to load when turned on
Review: After 4 months of continuous use, I don't know why the update screen sometimes disappears from my system while it's downloading. All I see are updates installed, software installed, and close button. Update time is slow compared to other adware/spyware downloads (the two freebies).
Real resource hog, but perhaps that's necessary.
Very glad you can control whether it goes on startup menu and shut down anti-spyware beta when you don't want to use resources for that purpose.
Has detected no spyware on my machine in 4 months and missed a Backweb Lite that was picked up by Spybot.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great to see a Product like this from MS!!!by LadypsDocH - May 14, 2005
Pros: Seamless intertwining with the OS
Cons: From MS????
Review: Seems to work quite well and very comprehensive without having a steep learing curve to use and apply.
Time will show its worth!!!!
THANKS Microsoft!!
PS: I am mostly a Mac user , but have respect for Microsoft's efforts!!
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
free spywareby goddly - May 14, 2005
Pros: another free spyware program
Cons: not the best but use it with the others its great
Review: all spyware programs are not perfect, but when you use these with ad aware, spybot,spy sweeper, spyware dr. it is great, it picks spyware that other spyware programs won't pick up. use it with norton. your computer is pretty safe
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Good Programby zxladie - May 12, 2005
Pros: Fast and accurate scans, easy to use
Cons: Allow/Deny popup will confuse some non-IT users
Review: After cleaning spyware out of systems for two years, I think this program is probably the best I've seen for complete coverage. I've been installing it on all my clients' systems. The only thing I would like to see is some function buttons on the main screen, ie: update, full scan, quick scan, etc. Also a better path description on the allow/deny popup. Hope it stays cost-free or at least a reasonable price.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Better than spybotby penick2000 - May 12, 2005
Pros: automatic, less intrusive
Cons: still in beta
Review: I would be the last to say this but while I have used spybot for years, I choose MS Anti-spyware. From all that I have read from various sources and perosnal use, I must say even in its beta stage MS is better. I used spybots full service and intalling programs becomes a nag with the registry monitor. MS just pops a message and then it gone. Nice and Easy. They both seem to have the same detection powers. I need portection not customization.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
free and efficientby Pannonius - May 11, 2005
Pros: updates itself automatically
Cons: Have to share information on the Net
Review: Got rid of spyware and keeps up to date on protection
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great for the XP operating system Microsoft won't let it screw up their own operating system.by richardwbailey - May 11, 2005
Pros: Its from Microsoft the XP people it won't screw-up their system as other products will do. It learns from you when installed.
Cons: What's taking so long bring on the Virus protection bundled with it.
Review: It obvious that Microsoft has taken many hits about their XP operating system. So they decided to do it on their own about protection. Not only with "Spyware" but with "virus" protection too. You'll discover it protects the basics of the Operating system. In other words you can't screw it up. It also learns and teaches by asking you to approve or disapprove. After a while you learn how other companies take advantage of the XP operating system. When they release the Virus protection rumers have it, it'll do much the same. As for me and my house I'll stick with Microsoft to protect my computer. Oh and it's FREE!
User Rating: 2.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Definitely a BETA....by clayton_cleverly - May 9, 2005
Pros: Free, and does have a few neat tricks up it's sleeve
Cons: NOT very capable, easily defeated by spyware...
Review: In a heavily infected system, you'll be lucky to even get this application to install, much less actually run and clean the machine. I wouldn't rule this tool out of my selection, it DOES do a nice job of process tracking, but as a first line defender? No chance this is my first pick.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Very good active protection, and privacy tools.by michaelss - May 9, 2005
Pros: Runs in the background to catch bugs on the fly, and alerts you to anything trying to tamper with your browser settings or windows configurations.
Cons: Requires a small bit of RAM to run full time.
Review: I've been using it for several months now and find it not only alerts you to spyware on the fly, but updates itself automatically. It also does what none of the others do, and thats to alert you to any program or script that attempts to change your configurations, especially your startup settings. Even when installing legitamate programs, it lets you know it's trying to load something in your start up, and if you don't want it, just block it. It also comes with nice privacy tools and a configuration recovery function. Even though it runs in the background, I have NOT noticed any performace hits.
User Rating: 2.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
I do not think It works!by ncharlie99 - May 6, 2005
Pros: Should be able to run in the background
Cons: Fails to pick up what others get
Review: I manage 10 computers and run Adware and Spybot and tried the MS product.
Even with MS running, it fails to catch ALOT of spy programs the others pick up.
I do not understand these raving reviews??
User Rating: 3.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Does a decent job, but needs to allow more user configuration.by mindlinks - May 6, 2005
Pros: Fairly good at catching most spyware, but does miss some which other proggies find
Cons: can't prevent it from allowing some programs, e.g. QuickTime quickstart, to keep installing. Pop-up window appears to announce what it's doing, but when window disappears no easy way to retrieve it.
Review: Nice program for the user who doesn't mind having very little control over what actions it does or doesn't perform; more experienced users would probably prefer, either instead of or along with, another program such as SpyBot or Lavasoft Ad-Aware. Also Scope out another fine program, "Winpatrol" @ winpatrol.com.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Excellent Productby ds0934 - May 6, 2005
Pros: Runs like an AV app (sentinel service, self-updates), Free!
Cons: Still needs to be tweaked to work with certain MS apps
Review: A server management version or add-on would be nice, but hey, it's FREE.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great anti-spyware!by susanna.soderstrom - May 5, 2005
Pros: Stable, permanently active in the background without disturbance
Cons: Made by Microsoft
Review: I was lucky enough to install the MS Anti-spyware beta when I had just reinstalled my whole system on a new harddisk. Since then I have had absolutely nothing in terms of spyware. Zero, nada. It doesn't seem to take up a lot of capacity even if it runs in the background. I only gave the product rating a 9 because it was made my MS, otherwise it is the perfect software for me and I would have given it a 10.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
One of the best spyware busters in the market place and its free!by yogiflyguy - May 5, 2005
Pros: Real time protection which pops up messages if it detects any suspicious activities.
Cons: Full system scan takes up a lot of resource and drags the computer. But its worth the while
Review: Its one of the best software able to detect sypware. And with regular software updates, this is a killer! I used to consider myself a very safe and knowledgable surfer. But there are a lot of smart spywares out there. I was surprised to find out a key logger installed on my system which I would have never detected untill I installed this software. But before your rejoice, it seems like the sofware is in the BETA phase till June,after which it is most likely to become a paid utility.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Excellent programby agg9900 - May 5, 2005
Pros: easy to use
Cons: nothing right now
Review: Good effort
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Best Antispyware Programby Richv5254 - May 5, 2005
Pros: Excellent at catching spyware others can't
Cons: Wish it could catch EVERYTHING.
Review: I haven't found anything better.
Thank you Microsoft.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Very Effectiveby j.craig - May 5, 2005
Pros: Easy to use
Cons: Misses some adwares
Review: I have this program on 3 computers using the XP OS. I use it and Ad-Aware to back-up Spybot and feel pretty free of spyware. Like my Norton Antivirus, it runs in the backround and does a full scan daily as a scheduled task. I respect Microsoft's addressing the spyware issue and making the product easy to use and keep up to date.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Best of the free antispywareby beaker342 - May 5, 2005
Pros: Caught more programs than S&D
Cons: Memory usage
Review: Microsoft's beta caught more spyware than the other freeware programs out there. Not only is it good at finding spyware, it also gives you easy access to a lot of the settings that spyware programs attack, like your homepage settings. It notifies you when changes are made to the registry, though this may use up too much memory on older computers. It also updates itself regularly. Overall a slick product. And best of all, free.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Better than spybot or adawareby Microman5 - May 5, 2005
Pros: finds and removes detrious
Cons: hard to find some advanced features
Review: While trying to eliminate several popup ads on a pc I tried all of the top runners Adware, Spybot and Webroot. None of them found anything. Yet the popups continued. Finally I installed the Microsoft product. Not only did it remove the offending malware but it found and cleaned left overs from a couple of other programs that everybody else left behind.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Excellent , need i say moreby ianmccully - May 5, 2005
Pros: good, very good at what is does
Cons: cant think of any as seems to work fine on my machine
Review: I think this product is very good, downloaded from microsoft website but make sure you have a valid windows as you will not get it other wise
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Excellent!by lawilson2 - May 5, 2005
Pros: Daily Scans at 2am; very thorough
Cons: None that I can see.
Review: I love it. It. combined with Spybot's TeaTimer, has kept spyware off of my machine for 3 months, and I browse heavily!
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Excellent -->Near 10 ratingby mcshada - May 5, 2005
Pros: has AUTO run function that other free programs lack.
Cons: has some of its own annoying pop ups that are hard to get rid of.
Review: The only improvement to make it a perfect 10 would be Automatic DELEATION of SPYWARE. AND to PREVENT the downloading of KNOWN SPYWARE in the first place! There are other family members that use this computer and I would like a SECURITY SETUP that would protect the computer from its operators. This is the only reason I didn't rate it a 10.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Excellent productby kirk4365 - May 5, 2005
Pros: quick and effective
Cons: none that I can think of
Review: Got back my hijacked homepage..works great so far.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Outstoundingby mssoot - May 5, 2005
Pros: clean intergration and good logging on events
Cons: pop up notices need close button
Review: After 5 tries this is the one to use. 2nd place spyseeper by webroot but MSAS less of a system hog and found more stuff. Great for malware removal with intergrated tools. removed nasty ones like coolweb & Iexplore search bar effortlessly unlike the others.
Better intergration than competitors
User Rating: 0.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Microsoft Antispyware has serious issuesby gary hall - May 5, 2005
Pros: None that I know of
Cons: Mysterious lock ups and never found any spyware
Review: Spybot and adaware run AFTER a Microsoft scan found spyware that MS didn't.
Also, mysterious feature and machine lock ups went away immediately after uninstall. I can see no reason to use MS ASW.
XP Pro, SP2 - all updates in place. Intel 3.4 MHz and motherboard. 2 gigs DDR2 RAM
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Better than all the others!by VOR01 - May 5, 2005
Pros: Very easy to setup (virtual no questions asked), always online, infection details, scheduling, relatively fast
Cons: No central management for IT departments but it is a great stand-alone program.
Review: Formally Giant Software this is another company that Microsoft 'annexed.' It is free for now because Microsoft wants to hook everyone in but it will become a subscription before the year is up. This is actually not a complaint because it does a good job, perhaps it is right that they should charge a small fee? On the other hand, it is primarily the flaws in their software that necessitates the need for such a program.
BTW, I have a 'bone' to pick with Tom Merritt (CNET section editor). He states, "Frankly, I think spyware fears are overblown." Are you joking? This is hardly overblown! I manage an IT department and this year alone, malware (which incorporates all forms of spyware and adware) has cost us over $15000.00 in lost productivity and sure support time to remove these insidious programs. I am not alone either; Techrepublic recently surveyed IT workers and malware is considered more dangerous than viruses. Why? Because viruses are now relatively easy to prevent.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Extremely Good. Best antispyware i have tried.by Brainiac24 - May 5, 2005
Pros: It is free, and it works. i notice no drag. It is a trusted Brand.
Cons: It beta, but i feel like it does not update enough. Plus i got norton internet secruity. It tells me i got spyware on my computer, but Microsoft Antispyware does not pick it up.
Review: Overall its very good and its only a beta version.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Much better than Spybotby mayno - May 5, 2005
Pros: Finds and fixes everything...FREE!
Cons: none really
Review: Ever since I started using MS Antispyware, I've never had to deal with having to manually remove spyware, which is something I had to do often with Spybot.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
brilliant!by bjornyeo - May 5, 2005
Pros: ALLOFITISGREAT
Cons: NONOFITISBAD
Review:
User Rating: 2.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Ok but misses stuffby avoigt - May 5, 2005
Pros: runs real time
Cons: misses stuff Spy-Bot and Ad-Aware catch
Review: I deleted it from my PC.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
9 Outta 10 with a bullet.by Catgic - May 5, 2005
Pros: Well and flexibly featured, Easy to use.
Cons: Appears blind to some nasties like about:blank.
Review: I've found no single Anti-Spyware so far that can do it all. A *Team Effort* is required. My triple-threat TEAM is Ad-Aware SE, Spybot S&D and MS AntiSpyware used daily keeps me Spyware Clean & Green at the 99++ percentile.
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
THIS BABY RAWKS !!!!by neil.mogre - May 4, 2005
Pros: updates itself, fire and forget , FREEE !!!!
Cons: can be a little slow , and just a little annoying at times...
Review: I was harrowed by spyware untill i found this amazing tool...i mean this thing could sniff out spyware from my system like a dog working for the bomb squad...iam impressed i must say...microsoft has done a great job...
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
The one and only antispyware product you'll ever need!by John.Wilkinson - May 4, 2005
Pros: Real-time scanning, frequent updates, and low on resources.
Cons: Sorry...this product is perfect!
Review: It is updated frequently, unlike its counterparts. It has realtime scanning (you have to pay for the "privilege" in Ad-aware). It barely makes a dent in the system resources. It finds more than Ad-aware, but without the false-positives of SpyBot. It's FREE. What more could you want?
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great Software at a Great Price: FREEby sanbornjnk - May 4, 2005
Pros: Good Design and is always working
Cons: has to update often
Review: This software is very good, even better than the pay versions. However, this is a beta version, so the kinks might not be worked out. Full version expected in summer 2005. Hopefully, it will still be free!
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
It has removed spyware that has been very stubborn to remove.by fastrax - May 4, 2005
Pros: It works great.
Cons: I haven't found any yet
Review: I was able to remove a couple of spy programs that would have taken a registry hack before.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Antispy is at least as good as Spybotby bill flinn - May 4, 2005
Pros: Easy to use , runs in the background and works correctly
Cons: Can't find any
Review: If we class this as a free offering it just confirms the view that the free programs out there offer the best protection . I run Avast antivirus , Spybot , Spyware blaster with Zone Alarm Pro which I paid for and really do not get any problems .
Does anyone know of a free PC health product like Registry Mechanic ??
User Rating: 0.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Looks Good but Doesn't Cleanby dpo345 - May 4, 2005
Pros: Easy to install; Looks fine and easy to use; Free
Cons: Doesn't detect or clean spyware
Review: After I reinstalled all the software for my computer after it crashed while attempting to install SP2 I decided to try Microsoft's AntiSpyware Beta. I thought it looked great, it was easy to use, and if is free! I was using it for about two or three weeks and was running it every few days and always had 0 detections for spyware. Then one day I took it to school and went on the wireless network. After only about twenty minutes my computer became inundated with spyware, but without knowing it. I ran Microsoft AntiSpyware at school and it found nothing, but I knew something wasn't right when I got home. For one thing I wasn't allowed to log on because a process was taking up my entire CPU. After running Microsoft AntiSpyware again at home I decided to try something else. So I downloaded and ran Ad-Aware and more than 250 spyware was detected. I cleaned my computer and then immediately uninstalled Micosoft's AntiSpyware because it is just a waste of hard drive space. I highly recommend you don't use this, there are much better alternatives.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Microsoft turned safety spec again.by eP-Greg - April 4, 2005
Pros: Great, easy and fast interface.
Cons: Will it work?
Review: At the moment, it's only on it's BETA stages. Like straw legs, 50/50, it could go terribly wrong for Microsoft or right.
The good thing I have to say is it's great to see Microsoft competing again, and now folks, in the freeware department!!
That meens you can get a Microsoft software product, well Giant really for nothing.
Who knows? I have a wide span suspicion that their plan is to make it licensed and full shareware if it becomes a major success.
I'm thus worried. It may not stand the market and the competition for long. Ad-aware from Lavasoft is already on it's way to over 3 million active users and over 1 million that actually bought it as a Professional bundle.
Anyway, this is Microsoft. And this people, is a good program. Easy interface and easy to learn from. It also has, if none of you notices a experise selector, I chose Advanced so it will now show more information about what it is doing instead of speaking immature computering language.
It's good. For the time being.
User Rating: 4.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Great program, but have another program just in caseby tanpreet - March 19, 2005
Pros: Good process of checking for spyware, Real-Time protection.
Cons: Didn't catch all spyware.
Review: When I first ran Microsoft's AntiSpyware, it worked great. It also has the "Real-Time protection" which tells you if any spyware has entered your system, like those antivirus programs. Only thing is that when I ran "Ad-aware", it found 5 more files. But still, Microsoft's program is pretty good.
User Rating: 4.5 stars
out of 100 user reviews
This is great.by gavinhaughey - March 18, 2005
Pros: Easy to use
Cons: How much will it cost ?
Review: After trying loads of anti spyware, this one looks like it has everything to offer. Very easy to use and understand. I think the anti spyware community is a great idea. It's only in it's beta version at the moment, but what will it cost when it's released?
User Rating: 5.0 stars
out of 100 user reviews
Quit Whiningby ahorn253 - March 7, 2005
Pros: Free. This software has the security from microsoft you want, you know when you install this it is not adding its own spyware like Adaware and others might do. The features.
Cons: None at all.
Review:
