I am so mad.

I went to one of the anti-spyware sites. You can download it for free, so I thought that was a great deal.

My computer takes FOREVER to download something, but I patiently waited the hour it took to get it downloaded.

Then, I went through all the steps to install it.

THEN, I patiently ran the spyware check - this took another 30 minutes.

The scan showed 380 spyware thingies on my computer. It was only at this point that the software said, in effect, "ha ha! We've detected almost 400 of these nasty things on your computer. To actually get rid of them, give us your credit card number."

I am so angry that the fact that the entire thing wasn't free wasn't explictly specified before I started this whole process. I feel this was false advertising. Yes, the SCAN was free, but could they not tell me the rest of it - that you have to pay after doing the scan.

As far as I'm concerned, this was worthless. And, I'll NEVER buy anything from the company that produced this. If they think this was a good way to make money, they're completely wrong.

I can't believe I stupidly spent so much of my time just now waiting for this program to do its thing.

That does suck! Are you allowed to tell us what company it is?

Hey! Somebody else got caught up in the "free" scan ad. But, you read the pitch again it says that the SCAN is free, nothing about getting rid of the spyware for the same price.
I was also disgusted and embarrassed (glad no one was with me). But the site did do me a favor; it pointed out a problem and I went to another site to buy the solution. Now, I scan once a week to delete spyware.
It always finds some spyware with the name "hot_bar" embedded in it. I wonder why the new program doesn't just delete this if it knows that it's dangerous.

Ad-aware and Spybot-S&D! are the spyware detection programs I see most recommended.

Ad-aware has a free version for download. They also have versions for purchase that come with a few more features. Spybot-S&D! is free but they appeal to your better nature to donate what you feel the program is worth to you.

With both programs, make sure you only run the latest versions with any updates available installed. It is worth taking note of the warning at the bottom of the Spybot-S&D! download page which says:

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Some software that uses spy or adware include in their license agreement, a general prohibition against modifying the software, or the prohibition against usage of the software without those 'bots'. Please read your license agreements first!
And remember: the best way to remove ads is to pay the shareware fee!

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I have read of cases where programs stop running when spyware removal programs are used. However, I believe both mentioned programs make back-ups of the things they remove, so the removal of anything that stops a program running can be put back again.

Also, note this from the Ad-aware site:

Quote:

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If you are new to Ad-Aware, we strongly recommend that you read the Help file before attempting to use the software for the first time. After you have read the manual please be sure to update your reference file to the latest release and be sure to configure the RefUpdate feature (recommended) to automatically search for new updates on a weekly basis.

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I have used both of these programs in the past with no trouble at all. I don't have them installed now though, which is why I'm a bit vague about current features. Time has shown that, apart from the usual tracking cookies, I don't get spyware on the computer and have never been 'browser hijacked'. I put this down to: Using Mozilla Firefox as a browser, never running without a firewall, virus scanning e-mail attachments (even those from friends and other known sources) and reading e-mails in plain text only. It maybe because of these practices that spyware programs never find anything amiss. There are no doubt 'tracking cookies' present but spyware removal programs don't seem able to detect them if you use a Mozilla based browser.

Tracking cookies are put onto your computer by many sites you visit. These will be seen as spyware by spyware removal programs. The programs can remove tracking cookies if you use Internet Explorer. This is because each cookie is stored as a separate small file in the Cookies (and Temporary Internet Files) folder. The removal programs go in and delete them. However, with Mozilla based browsers, the cookies are written into a single file. Unless things have changed in the latest versions, spyware programs cannot remove the entries in the file. I remove them manually and opt not to let further instances of them back into the computer (an option that Firefox has).

I personally don't tend to be quite so paranoid about tracking cookies as I used to be. I expect all the usual ones are on my computer at present. Long periods of just letting them stay doesn't seem to have affected my way of life or Internet experience. Nonetheless, it's all part of the privacy issue and most people like to get rid of cookies seen as spyware. A bit on cookies.

Spyware programs don't always deal with everything. I expect, like antivirus programs, they attempt to stay abreast with threats but new annoyances are always arriving. That's why it best to keep checking back for program updates.

fjohn - There are ways to deal specifically with getting rid of Hotbar. Read this, other articles can be read by typing 'hotbar removal' into a search engine.

Thanks Linda and fjohn I`m glad, in a perverse way, that I wasn`t the only one that downloaded that program only to find out it didn`t actually do anything. I`m not completely sure that there is in fact any spyware in my comp even though the scan[m] advised there was. I use ad-aware and spybot but had hoped to find the trojan horse that I believe is stabled in my computer.

Thanks for the good info, tellywellies. I use Spyhunter to check for the bad things that some people want to load on my computer. When I first installed it, the program found about 160 spy programs on my machine, of which Spyhunter found a half-dozen considered "serious." The rest were medium risk or unknown risk.
I run the program about once a week to check "files,' because it takes an hour and a half to run. Checking "registry" takes a half-hour. Checking "cookies" and "memory" takes a few seconds, so I run those checks every day.

I would recommend Ad-aware and Spybot S&D as well, both of which can scan the entire system (cookies, registry, disk drives) in less than 15 minutes. They have both been very effective, and the few gremlins that happen to sneak by them (such as the irritating MySearchNow toolbar for IE) get caught by HijackThis, which I run every few weeks.

Oh, but when I'm on Linux (like now), I don't have any Spyware-protection utility installed, but I can comfort myself with the fact that most spyware isn't designed to infect Unix-based PCs! In addition, there's no IE here (I'm on Firefox), further reducing the chances of my computer getting infected.

Despite this, every few days, I prefer to delete all my cookies which look unnecessary. I can tell which cookies ought to be there (such as those from FunTrivia, Yahoo, Netscape), and those that shouldn't- the ones from advertising agencies like Advertising.com, Burstnet, any cookies of whom the originating site has the combination of letters "ad" in them, and basically any cookies that I feel I don't need.