How to stop 'common' spyware?

don9999

I regularly run three Adware/Spyware programs: Microsoft Antispyware. Adaware 6, Spybot - Search & Destroy. All are maintained with latest updates, and are sometimes run daily.

However...the same common items keep coming up time & time again.
eg. Adviva, Avenue A., BFast, Doubleclick, Hitbox, MediaPlex etc. etc.

I delete them, and if I re-scan can confirm that they have gone.
However, if I re-scan the following day, they are all back!

I don't do anything unusual on my PC. The usual surfing (no dodgy sites!) and minimal downloading.

I could understand if I were downloading a lot of stuff off the internet via P2P ow whatever, but even when I don't download anything, these items still seem to appear.

I see 2 possibilities:
1) Somehow my PC is 'infected' with 'dormant spyware' which re-install themselves periodically somehow, or
2) They automatically install from sundry well-known web-sites

If (1), how do I find them and get rid of them? As I said I run all the Adware/Spyware programs, Norton Antivirus, and Zonealarm firewall. I feel pretty comfortable against normal viruses, trojans and other attacks (I'm also behind a hardware firewall), but these Spyware programs are just annoying.

If (2) is there any point in finding/deleting them? If they're going to return daily from normal surfing, why don't I just save my time and leave them on my system rather than checking for them all the time?

Any thoughts?

Cheers,
Don

criminal_smile

Have you used Hijackthis yet? It finds all the trojans etc which get hidden in your windows/system32 folder, and in the registry. I would imagine this is why they keep returning each day.
Hijackthis finds the program, and not only stops it dead, but also looks for the root folder of the trojan/spyware. It then deletes all instances of it. I've used it and found it pretty effective. Not going to put my neck on the line and say that it will solve all your problems, but it's deffo another security program you should be using as part of your already substantial package.

fatboyonadiet

criminal_smile where could we get this from?

nbt

you can get it here
http://www.download.com/HijackThis/3000-8022_4-10307556.html?tag=lst-0-1

We_Laugh_Indoors

i found that my norton internet security 2005 does a really good job.

it has the whole lot, antivirus, firewall etc.

got it for £17 off ebay

fatboyonadiet

I did too! BUT I use AVG, SpyBot and Microsoft Spyware aswell and run all once a week, one will normally find something another has missed

LincsLad_3

You should also install Spyware Blaster onto your PC. SB is different from Adaware and SpyBot in that its role is to prevent the installation of Spyware rather than cleaning it out afterwards.

Once installed, SB should be updated often, as with any anti-virus/anti-malware application, but that apart ther eis no other overhead in terms of time or processing power. SB does not need to run in the background while the PC is on.

It is not going to stop 100% of malware being installed on your system, but it should cut down the amount dramatically.

HTH

don9999

Thanks for the advice so far. I also use Microsoft AntiSpware which is a resident program and claims to stop new malware being installed. But it doesn't catch the common ones I mentioned before.

To be honest, I don't have a big problem - besides the 7 or 8 regular ones, I only get a few others from time to time (which get spotted and cleaned by one or other of the checkers.)

My query is more to do with the regular ones. If they are able to come back daily (presumably from simple daily surfing), then is there any point in finding/deleting them regularly?

I'll try HijackThis, but I think I've tried it before, with no noticeable improvement to my system.

Cheers,
Don

Debt_Free_Chick

I hate the kind of post I'm about to write ..... but I have no problems at all and I run pretty much the same security that you do. (I hate this post as just because I don't have a problem doesn't mean that everyone else should be OK too).

Perhaps it's linked to some of the sites you visit?

You could try disconnecting from the net then turning off system restore. Run the scans and, when clean, turn system restore on again and immediately create a new restore point. It could be that some of this stuff is residing in the system and the restore feature is refreshing them in some way.

Other than that, I can only suggest a complete reformat & reinstallation - but that's a bit drastic, especially as the bugs are at least being caught. And do make sure you have relevant backups etc.

Cheers

We_Laugh_Indoors

maybe it is certain sites that you visit.

i know that some of the football and other sports sites have caused problems in the past.

try going on all the sites you usually visit and then run a check after each one.

time consuming i know but if it bothers you it may be good to know which it is.

*edit*bum, look at my poor timing!*edit*

andy88_2

As you surmised they are used for advertising on loads of well-known sites. LincsLad is right; SpywareBlaster will block most of the common ones and harmful sites as well.