Best Spyware/Pop Up Blocker

I got fairly new laptop and I want to keep it as clean as possible but as cheap as possible. I’m thinking of downloading something like Ad-ware for spyware and pop up protection, but if you guys know any better ones, PLEASE let me know.

I use Ad-Aware for clean up, but I think ZoneAlarm puts out a pretty decent firewall. The basic firewall and pop-up blocker is free.

Forgot to mention, i already got Mozilla’s Firefox.

I plan on getting Ad-ware, but I keep reading how you need Ad-ware for scanning registry and then you need Spybot Search and Destroy for removing software the comp picked up.

I’m trying not to download a bunch of shit I don’t need.

I use Ad-Aware SE Personal and have ZoneAlarm on my computer. I run Ad Aware like once a month and only a few things come up. So id say it keeps my computer pretty clean.

I bought a 2 year subscription to ZoneAlarm Pro Firewall (zonealarm.com), have Norton Anti-Virus free through my university and also have 2 free programs I run weekly:
-Spybot: Search & Destroy 1.4 and
-AdAware SE Personal Edition 1.06
both of which can be found free on download.com.

My computer’s been clean for 3 years now. It might seem like a lot, but I don’t have any friends who’s computers aren’t shot to shit by now.

Without the Norton Anti-Virus, I’d recommend ZoneAlarm’s Internet Security Suite that has anti-virus and a firewall.

Thanks for the replies, but I must say this:

I’m HORRIBLE with computer lingo. I don’t know what a registry is or a proxy, I just want to keep this laptop clean and alive.

Meaning I’m gonna need the help of you computer types who replied.

i use spybot S&D, its a realy good program for being free.

AdAware PRO + Avast + SpyBOt , all of them with the latest upgrades left me unprotected and my PC got infected.
I don’t think they are good,maybe just average,but not good.

[quote]JKThreeEleven17 wrote:
I bought a 2 year subscription to ZoneAlarm Pro Firewall (zonealarm.com), have Norton Anti-Virus free through my university and also have 2 free programs I run weekly:
-Spybot: Search & Destroy 1.4 and
-AdAware SE Personal Edition 1.06
both of which can be found free on download.com.

My computer’s been clean for 3 years now. It might seem like a lot, but I don’t have any friends who’s computers aren’t shot to shit by now.

Without the Norton Anti-Virus, I’d recommend ZoneAlarm’s Internet Security Suite that has anti-virus and a firewall.[/quote]

Yeah, my university gives us Symantec. In my opinion, all you need is a decent firewall and antivirus, haven’t had any attacks since I built my PC. And make sure your Anti-virus program is set to “auto-scan” or whatever the option is to check ALL incoming files.

Oh and stay away from certain programs, sites, etc. Such as AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and the like. My parents have that crap on their computer at home and they have spyware\adware out the ass. You shouldn’t have to worry with Internet Explorer if you upgrade to verson 7, it actually alerted me of a phishing site before I went to it.

Hope this helps…

[quote]En Sabah Nur wrote:
JKThreeEleven17 wrote:
I bought a 2 year subscription to ZoneAlarm Pro Firewall (zonealarm.com), have Norton Anti-Virus free through my university and also have 2 free programs I run weekly:
-Spybot: Search & Destroy 1.4 and
-AdAware SE Personal Edition 1.06
both of which can be found free on download.com.

My computer’s been clean for 3 years now. It might seem like a lot, but I don’t have any friends who’s computers aren’t shot to shit by now.

Without the Norton Anti-Virus, I’d recommend ZoneAlarm’s Internet Security Suite that has anti-virus and a firewall.

Yeah, my university gives us Symantec. In my opinion, all you need is a decent firewall and antivirus, haven’t had any attacks since I built my PC. And make sure your Anti-virus program is set to “auto-scan” or whatever the option is to check ALL incoming files.

Oh and stay away from certain programs, sites, etc. Such as AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and the like. My parents have that crap on their computer at home and they have spyware\adware out the ass. You shouldn’t have to worry with Internet Explorer if you upgrade to verson 7, it actually alerted me of a phishing site before I went to it.

Hope this helps…

[/quote]

What’s a Firewall?

The big thing to remember is be on the lookout for carefully disguised downloads. Sometimes it looks like a little windows message, but the giveaway is that there are 2 “x” images next to each other.

Sometimes popup ads off center themselves and you cant even see the X button to close it, hitting Alt + the f4 button will close the window. They are very tricky to deal with for some people.

Like I said, If you download something, especially a file ending in “.exe” and you dont know what it is… send it to the recycle bin.

[quote]Lonnie123 wrote:
The big thing to remember is be on the lookout for carefully disguised downloads. Sometimes it looks like a little windows message, but the giveaway is that there are 2 “x” images next to each other.

Sometimes popup ads off center themselves and you cant even see the X button to close it, hitting Alt + the f4 button will close the window. They are very tricky to deal with for some people.

Like I said, If you download something, especially a file ending in “.exe” and you dont know what it is… send it to the recycle bin.[/quote]

Good lookin, Lonnie

Don’t waste your time with spy-ware…it doesn’t work and often doesn’t let you connect to client ware.

Don’t waste your time with buying antivirus protection there are tonnes of open source aps out there. I recommend AVGfree. It will allow you to schedule scans and will download virus definitions at a time of your choosing.

If you’re running MS XP you should have a firewall just make sure it’s up when on the web and that should be all you need.

Doesn’t matter if you have those applications, unless you have a condom on your modem, you’re gonna get mal-ware and spyware, whether you see it or not. Those apps just pick up the easy ones.

Best.Protection.Ever.

Norton Corporate 10…is pretty frickin bad ass…i haven’t had any issues…of course there is one way to keep spyware and adware off your computer…look at less porn…hahaha

[quote]EMT-FF Jordan wrote:
…of course there is one way to keep spyware and adware off your computer…look at less porn…hahaha[/quote]

Yep, that’s my weakness :slight_smile: Lost count of the number of times I’ve had to format my hard drive. I’m thinking of getting a second pc, solely for porn viewing purposes.

BAhahahahahahahha! well i guess that is one way to solve your issue on your main computer. hahaha

I’ve also used AdWare and Spybot with great success.

Btw- Wol, have you seen Scott Hall lately? (not to change the subject but I see he’s your avitar)

Sorry to break the news.

[quote]WolBarret wrote:
I got fairly new laptop and I want to keep it as clean as possible but as cheap as possible. I’m thinking of downloading something like Ad-ware for spyware and pop up protection, but if you guys know any better ones, PLEASE let me know.

[/quote]

I used to have Ad-aware like many people. I now use AVG, which seems to work better and consume less system resources. There is a free version that you can download at:

http://free.grisoft.com/doc/20/lng/us/tpl/v5

I would consider purchasing and “Internet Suite” for your laptop. The suites typically include firewall, antivirus, email spam blocker, spyware removal, etc.

Zonelabs, Norton, TrendMicro, Mcafee amongst many other all have the listed capabilities. I recommend the ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite. I have this installed and it works great. I do not recommend Norton’s Suite only because it slows down your machine too much.

AVG works great in tandem with my ZoneAlarm Suite.

For pop-ups, download and install Mozilla Firefox to use as your default browser.

As far as spyware goes, the best defense is to make sure you don’t click on anything suspicious and don’t install things that pop up while you’re surfing the net unless you recgonize the manufacturer.

If you end up getting screwed by spyware, ad-aware is pretty good for controlling the problem. however, to eradicate the problem and not just control it, you’ll need to mess with the registry following online instructions or a professional.