Microsoft recently acquired a small anti-spyware vendor, and has released their product in beta form as Microsoft AntiSpyware. The timing of this one seems really bad, if the tool is any good then it should have been included in XP SP2, but better late than never. At first glance it looks pretty decent (and it is fast, much faster than S&D), but without actually having any spyware on my computers it is hard to tell how good a job it does. Anyone have any experience with this one yet?
Microsoft AntiSpyware
8 responses to “Microsoft AntiSpyware”
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well it did pick up three things on the kids box that pretty religious use of s and d missed. so it’s got my attention.
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Were those three things "tracking cookies"? Because personally I could care less about cookies, even if it does allow Double Click to know that I recently looked at Amazon.com. The only kind of spyware I’m concerned with is software that runs on my machine and takes up resources.
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no, registery enteries & one adware s/w that i thought s and d had gotten rid of.
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It’s good, pretty good. I quite agree that it is fast. It’s interface is cool. Realtime protection feature is an an excellent add-on.
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So I wonder how long it will be before a spyware removing company sues Microsoft on antitrust grounds. Because we all know that if Microsoft releases this spyware software as part of windows, and its ‘good enough’, most people will stick with it instead of seeking out a better alternative.
I can’t say I’m against Microsoft’s decision to do this though (even though I’m typically not a Microsoft apologist). I think they have the right to take any measures to make sure their software is secure and protected. -
Hey, I read in article on CNN.com that Microsoft MAY charge for this software, after it’s free distribution ends on July 31st. This , I believe would be preposterous.
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Why would it be preposterous for MS to charge for it? If they release it as stand-alone software which you can purchase then it is competing with other anti-spyware tools and will stand or fall on it’s own merits.
The other option, based on standard MS practice, is to bundle it into their OS and try to squeeze out the competition.
I think I prefer the purchase-it-if-you-want-it model, personally. -
It found 11 items that neither SpyBot nor Ad-Aware picked up. Of the items, two were for Kazza and Morpheus, which i haven’t has on my computer for over two years…. so i guess its helping me clean up too 🙂
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