# Spybot problem **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 18, 2004, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925 "2004-10-18T22:52:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/1 "2004-10-18T22:52:27Z")
Yes, I read the computer sticky first, and the Spybot faq. No help there. And I ran Adaware, my Norton antivirus stuff, and CWshredder. Security task manager finds nothing out of sorts. I even uninstalled and reinstalled Spybot. And I’m still stuck. I run the scan, and about 2/3 of the way thru, it locks up. Stops at Bot-check (2957/5835: C2.lop) and hasn’t progressed in 24 hours. It has stopped at this same point in the last 3 attempts to run it. The program can be minimized, and other buttons are active, except I can’t close the program, except by using the task manager. Rebooting changes nothing. Words of wisdom? ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/2 "2004-10-18T23:00:40Z")
Googling “2957/5835” turns up a few leads, particularly [this](http://forums.techguy.org/archive/index.php/t-133614.html), which looks helpful 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![fireman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@fireman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fireman)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/3 "2004-10-18T23:02:02Z")
Is that the newest version? From the numbers posted, it doesn’t look like it. I could be wrong though. My version checks for over 20000 items. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/4 "2004-10-18T23:23:09Z")
Thanks, **Gman**! That worked like a charm! ---
**Author:** ![Bewildebeest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@Bewildebeest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bewildebeest)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/5 "2004-10-19T15:41:59Z")
My friend in Texas would also like to give you a heartfelt thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Cowgirl\_Jules](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@Cowgirl\_Jules](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cowgirl_Jules)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/6 "2004-10-20T02:39:54Z")
Thanks **Gman** , you helped me too! ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/7 "2004-10-20T02:48:51Z")
> [@fireman](#): > > Is that the newest version? From the numbers posted, it doesn’t look like it. I could be wrong though. My version checks for over 20000 items. I second **fireman**. It sounds very much like some of you are running a very old version of Spybot, one that hasn’t had any file updates in a long, long time. These kinds of tools are of little use if you don’t keep them up-to-date. You should be running Spybot version 1.3, and the latest detection updates should be dated 2004-10-14. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/8 "2004-10-20T02:52:11Z")
> [@Early Out](#): > > I second **fireman**. It sounds very much like some of you are running a very old version of Spybot, one that hasn’t had any file updates in a long, long time. These kinds of tools are of little use if you don’t keep them up-to-date. > > You should be running Spybot version 1.3, and the latest detection updates should be dated 2004-10-14. Well, that’s interesting. Because I’ve had my spybot search for updates periodically (including again 2 minutes ago) and it reports there are no updates. I’m running version 1.2 too. Guess I should uninstall and redownload. ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/9 "2004-10-20T02:55:39Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > Well, that’s interesting. Because I’ve had my spybot search for updates periodically (including again 2 minutes ago) and it reports there are no updates. I’m running version 1.2 too. Guess I should uninstall and redownload. The older version (1.2) can’t use the newest file updates, so when you tell it to look for file updates, it says there aren’t any. What you need is the newest version of the _engine_, version 1.3. That’s the only version for which file updates are now being made available. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/10 "2004-10-20T05:36:21Z")
> [@Early Out](#): > > The older version (1.2) can’t use the newest file updates, so when you tell it to look for file updates, it says there aren’t any. What you need is the newest version of the _engine_, version 1.3. That’s the only version for which file updates are now being made available. I had the same problem with Spybot. I also naively assumed that checking for updates would also inform you about updates to the engine. Silly me. Uninstalling and redownloading the new version did the trick for me. (Actually, what really seems to be doing the trick is running Ad-Aware as well.) I’m just taking heart that my spyware problem doesn’t seem to be quite as bad as **Cecil’s**. Ad-Aware only found 300-something things today. Where the hell does all this crap come from? But, my system is finally running at a seemingly normal speed for the first time in months _knock on wood_. And my IE-loving sister-in-law should have no reason to touch this machine ever again, so perhaps we can keep it this way. ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spybot-problem/269925/11 "2004-10-20T11:37:57Z")
> [@Tamex](#): > > I had the same problem with Spybot. I also naively assumed that checking for updates would also inform you about updates to the engine. Silly me. Yeah, I only stumbled on it by accident. AdAware does a better job of letting you know when there’s a complete new version available, and steering to the download site. But, hey, it’s tough to do too much bitching about free stuff!