Spyware Now Accounts For More Than 50% Of Windows Failures

[Mike Temporale]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.winnetmag.com/windowspaulthurrott/Article/ArticleID/42432/windowspaulthurrott_42432.html' target='_blank'>http://www.winnetmag.com/windowspaulthurrott/Article/ArticleID/42432/windowspaulthurrott_42432.html</a><br /><br /></div>"Deceptive software, also known as spyware, now accounts for more than 50 percent of the Windows failures reported to Microsoft and is becoming an important industry concern. Microsoft's partners report that spyware is the number-one support problem and is costing the industry millions of dollars a year in support costs. Earlier this week, Microsoft and other companies detailed to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) the steps they're taking to reduce the threat and problems spyware causes. The FTC, which has received many complaints about spyware, is working on a policy for combatting deceptive software. At the FTC Spyware Workshop held Monday in Washington, D.C., Microsoft presented its antispyware efforts, which include consumer education, technology, and the publication of industry best practices."<br /><br />Wow. I have spent more than a couple hours fixing machines for family, friends, and clients over the years and Spyware is always one of the top things I look. Thank god for applications like <a href="www.spybot.info">SypBot</a> and <a href="http://www.lavasoftusa.com/">Ad-Aware</a>. If you are having stability problems, take the time and run one of these anti-Spyware applications. It could change your world. Well, 50% of you anyway. :wink:

[brianchris]

http://www.nettally.com/gohlke/sec.html

This website provides a simple but complete overview of computer security. As a network admininstartor, I've recomended all practices there for some time.

However, only recently did I install any Anti-spyware software. I was shocked....even following all of those best practices, there were a number of things Ad-aware detected on my computer. True, most were cookies, which are hard to defend against, but there were a few files and regisrty keys as well.

Its clear to me that realtime Spyware protection is now as important as realtime Virus protection. Its the sad truth.

[TANKERx]

Spyware is evil! Evil! Evil! Evil! :twisted:

Lop should die in the muddy pit of nasty stuff, and so should all the others! What kind of advertising do they want to achieve by crippling my computer;

"Oh look, this popup is advertising something I've never wanted but because it's advertised in such a distinctive yet nicely obtrusive manner, I will drop what I'm doing and follow the link and send my Debit Card details to this company (of which I've never heard) in order to purchase the high quality service being offered" ....

I don't think so! :roll:

Spam and adware are all sent by people who have sold their hard drives to the devil!!!!! :evil: :evil: :evil: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :evil: :evil: :evil: :twisted: :evil: :twisted: :evil: :twisted: :evil:

[refnulf]

Arrgghh, it's just impossible to control spyware. I'm running real time spyware detecting programs, anti virus, firewalls and still I get spyware all over the computer.

And spyware has done some damage to my computer. Sigh, if only I could find it and beat the crap outta it like you can do with people.