Update your Microsoft AntiSpyware!

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I’m not the sort of guy who generally shills for Microsoft, but reviews of their AntiSpyware program suggest that it does a good job, and running it in combination with AdAware, Spybot S&D, SypwareBlaster, and a firewall has kept my computer free of problems for quite a while

Well, yesterday i happened to look in my system tray (that recessed bit at the bottom right of the screen) and noticed that MS AntiSpyware wasn’t running. I thought this was odd, as i had it set up to open and offer real-time protection whenever Windows opens.

So, i go Programs and open Microsoft AntiSpyware, only to get a dialog box telling me that my version has expired, and that i need to download and install the new version. I went to the website, and sure enough there’s a new version that you can download after confirming that you are running a valid copy of Windows.

But if i hadn’t happened to notice that the program wasn’t running when it should have been, i might not have found out about the update. Usuaully when software “runs out,” the computer user is informed, but there was no email and no warning from Microsoft about this.

I just thought i’d post this, in case other folks have unwittingly run out of time on their MS AntiSpyware.

2

Mine automatically updated… seems to work like a charm, but then again I tend to stick to trusted corners of the internet.

3

Interesting. Mine didn’t, and nor did my wife’s. Not sure why that is.

4

Technically, it reminded me to download the latest edition.

5

I got a little system tray memo that a new version was ready to download.

6

I got a prompt that my version was out of date and would I like to update now. I said yes but nothing happened.

This happened a few times so I eventually went to the MS antispyware site and updated myself.

Strange that different people are experiencing different things. I’m on XPproSP2 BTW?

7

One small issue to be aware of with MS AntiSpyware:
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1834607,00.asp

As the OP suggests, it’s a good idea to use multiple anti-spyware solutions.

8

I too received a prompt to update.

9

Thanks for that link, Revtim.

In my opinion, it’s a fucking sacandal that MS, a company that consistently trumpets its commitment to fair and honest computing, would buy a spyware company like Calria in the first place. It’s even more disheartening that, having bought the company, they change their Antispyware settings to ignore it.

10

Mine wasn’t in the system tray so I updated, now it’s still not appearing in the tray. I’ve set the settings so it should appear down there, but it’s not, any got any ideas?

btw, does anyone use MS antispyware on its own or dores everyone else use one of the others too?

11

I totally agree. I also find it odd that they would get in bed with spyware makers simply because one of the main arguments against using Windows is because there’s so much spyware out there that targets it. Supporting spyware in any form is shooting themselves in the foot somewhat.

12

I’m sure some people do use only MS, but it’s very bad idea to do so. Not just because of the Claria incident referenced above, but not all progs catch the same things; what one misses another prog might catch.

I use AdAware and Spybot primarily, I just started using MS as well.

13

Try going to your programs section and actually opening the program. Then, when it’s open, go to Options > Settings, click on Real Time Protection, and check the two boxes there.

As Revtim suggests, spyware/malware detectors are best used in tandem. I have Spywareblaster running permanently (this program helps prevent stuff getting to your computer in the first place), and for detection i run AdAware, Spybot, and MS AntiSpyware once a week.

If you want some confirmation that a single antispyware program isn’t enough, read this article:

Anti-adware misses most malware

Note that the Giant AntiSpyware program that gets the highest rating in this test was purchased by Microsoft, and is now MS AntiSpyware.

14

It seems, based on a Google News Search, that the Microsoft plan to buy Claria is off, if indeed it ever really existed in the first place.

Some tech commentators seem to believe that it was an intentional, pre-emptive leak to find out whether there would be any PR downside to buying a spyware firm (duh).

Microsoft has apparently been swamped with emails from angry Windows users, and has placed on its website a statement attempting to explain its recent changes to the way that MS AntiSpyware classifies Claria software.

15

Don’t uninstall Spybot and Ad-aware just yet.
I have MS Antispyware since it came out. It is updated, and runs every night. It has never found anything.
Whenever my computer runs slow, I update Spybot, and Ad-aware and then remove the problems. Day before yesterday the score was
MS 0
Spybot 2
Ad-aware 11 (classed as minor)

Color me unimpressed.

16

Well, i’m not sure this means a great deal. First of all, the article i linked to said that, although Giant AntiSpyware (now MS AntiSpyware) found the most stuff, it still only found and fixed about 64% of malware.

Second, it’s entirely possible that the stuff you had on your computer just happened to be the stuff that AdAware and Spybot are good at detecting.

Third, all of these malware detectors often detect and “fix” things that aren’t really a problem in the first place. For example, AdAware and Spybot often list cookies as problems to be fixed, even though cookies can be very useful. Hell, i never remove my SDMB cookie, because it allows me to come to the Dope without logging in every time.

But you are correct—don’t uninstall AdAware or Spybot. Use them in tandem with MS’s product.