7 replies to this topic

[Saint_Michael]

I had written a interesting article based off of another post on lifehacker about the best Malware removal tools and I thought I would give my thoughts on these tools. As for the software discussed they are Spybot, SuperAntiSpyware, ComboFix, Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware, and HijackThis. In my article I gave much praise to the first two and Anti-Malware because of their user friendliness for all users, while I went a bit critical on Combofix and Hijack being used for more advance computer users.

Now I know there is a topic about Anti-virus software and stuff like that and so this topic is more about how do users fair against these 5 program, of course I doubt too many people have heard of ComboFix though.

[rayzoredge]

I've worked with a handful of the listed softwares, and I can vouch for some of them.

Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware is probably the best out of the bunch and is relatively easy to use. (Just opt for a Full Scan and let the computer sit for a long time.) Same goes for SuperAntiSpyware, although MBAM did catch a few things that SAS missed. (Then again, I think this is the case for just about every anti-malware software, because not one catches them all.) Spybot Search and Destroy would be another dummy-friendly app, but as far as its effectiveness... I'm not sure about it, since it reminds me of Norton AV 2007, where it would repeatedly catch the "threats" the real threat generates and doesn't fully eliminate the problem. (It does house a lot of useful tools and versatility, though.)

ComboFix and HijackThis would be two tools that I would leave to the more tech-savvy. I haven't used either of them, personally, but from what I'm seeing, HT produces a log that would seem like gibberish to the average user (but useful to geeks) and ComboFix seems like a last resort... fix, short of wiping everything out and starting all over again with a fresh [Windows] OS reinstallation.

In summary, I would recommend MBAM and SAS in conjunction, installed and run from safe mode to catch most if not all threats, and to follow any guidance found on the Internet in removing specific threats that seem to recur. (I use Norton's database for a step-by-step instruction on how to kill even the most stubborn of Trojans.) I would leave CF and HT to people who actually are very comfortable with computers and how to work them.

[frozen.fish]

IMHO a decent antivirus and stopping porn browsing does a lot. Articles about security are mostly overkill, it will just bog down your computer.

[rnichilo]

I use Spybot Search and destroy, and if Spybot can't remove something, I then use Hijack this, this combination seems to work great, i used to use ad-aware but spybot seems to be sufficent. imo.
just my 2 cents

[rayzoredge]

frozen.fish, on May 7 2009, 06:26 PM, said:

IMHO a decent antivirus and stopping porn browsing does a lot. Articles about security are mostly overkill, it will just bog down your computer.

They do bog your machine down, some more than others. I actually hate using my antivirus's auto-protect feature and opt in manually scanning anything that I deem suspicious, and leaving the Internet security up so that I prevent most crap from happening. However, browsing for porn isn't the only way to pick up a virus.

Not one program will catch them all. That's why you have multiple scanners, but if you're like me and just have one, and if that one fails to catch something or human error lets something through (like approving a svchost service), you have your tools to fix the havoc you allowed onto your machine. And most of these tools listed will do the trick if you're not too keen on the whole wipe-and-reinstall.

Linux need not apply.

[iGuest]

Surfing for porn- wow, that's getting old! You don't need to surf porn to get infections, just surf around MSN's link for an hour or two and sooner or later you'll get infected. There are no "safe sites" anymore. Even surfing clean, wholesome sites can wreak havoc on your machine by an infected webmaster's machine who just uploaded a new file to his site, without knowing it!

Both Malwarebytes and Superantispyware are superb products, right here right in October, 2009. Unfortunately, many new infections are well aware of MWB's  presence and will not allow it to run after the fact. Renaming the mbam.Exe will sometimes work, sometimes not.

Haven't used Ad-Aware or Spybot for a few years, they seem to find infections but seldom remove the new, heavy-duty infections- this may not be a fair assessment.

For my money, Malwarebytes (licen$ed, running resident) and PrevX 3.0 (licen$ed, running resident) are the two best solutions on the market right now. PrevX has a little leg up on MWB as it is quicker and lighter and lets nothing by when run resident (installed, running in the system tray).

Reading some other posts, some people feel PrevX is a ripoff, as it will scan for free and find infections. Then they charge you for removal. I feel they are 100% within their right to charge for a superior product. Sooner or later, all the other freebie AV solutions will need to charge to keep their business alive or go under. Are you willing to work for free with nothing in return? Didn't think so!

On the other hand, there are genuine ripoff products like Norton, Symantec, whatever you want to call it. I call it crap because it does nothing, provides no value. All of the current slime side right past Normantec.

If you run either Malwarebytes or PrevX, the paid version, installed, there's a good chance you will not have to worry about getting infected in the first place.

 

-reply by 1 THz

[iGuest]

Free doesnFive Best Malware Removal Tools, Or Are They Really?

Microsoft Security Essentials (which is a free download - requires Genuine Advantage authentication) found and destroyed malware that Norton, McAfee and Trend could not find.

It is now my AV of choice.

-reply by Barry

[iGuest]

Malware Trouble! ??Five Best Malware Removal Tools, Or Are They Really?

MS Security Essentials [Free] and PrevX 3.0 [full 1year only 25squid] work brilliant together! Both apps' use little sytem resources and what one might miss the other picks up straight away. I had a nasty problem with infections recently and I have to say pevx was the only software that was successful in installing, then updating, then scanning, then detecting, then removing the problems. After running PrevX I was able to install MS Security Essentials which did a great job at cleaning up the left overs. My computer was in such a mess I was ready to format HDD and re-install XP but I couldn't even Boot from CD or start in SafeMode, Lucky for me I tried out Prevx and it worked miracles! That's why I felt the need to 'Go Tell It On The Mountain' and post some comments. Any comrads out there fed up of Malware need to get hold of these two Anti-Malware Apps! 

-reply by Jon Blann