As soon as I started up my computer and started up my Web browser this morning, I got a popup asking me to install some kind of task bar (WeatherCast). Since I had not yet surfed to any Web pages yet, I suspect that this popup is the result of the installation of some kind of spyware. Can anyone tell me how I can go about uninstalling it?
There is an excellent program put out by Lavasoft called Ad-aware 6.0. It scans your registry and files for any kind of spyware/malware. I highly recommend it.
I second the recommendation of Ad-aware. Another program out there is SpyCatcher. Both work well at removing that kind of invasive little programs you didn’t know you had.
Zounds! A nefarious development. I opened my Add/Remove programs control panel and found WeatherCast there. But when I hit the change/remove button, a WeatherCast dialogue box pops up trying to persuade me to keep it. It does ask “Do you want to keep your existing WeatherCast for Free?” with yes/no buttons? Should I hit “no”?
Most definitely hit “no”. After the program “uninstalls” you should still go into your program files and see if there are any files named “weathercast” left over. A lot of times they leave their junk sitting around on your hard drive. I still recommend that you get ad-aware. you can pick up spyware from simply surfing the internet these days and it’s good to run if every few days.
In addition, to Ad-Aware and Spybot Search and Destroy, there’s a great tool called Spyware Blaster, which stops spyware from installing itself.
That Weather Caster program is bad. It should definetly go. I will second the vote for SpyWare Blaster. I installed it on the kids computers and they are pretty free of any new stuff.