Anti-parasite software

Reputable anti-parasite software

• Free anti-parasite software...
• Commercial anti-parasite software...
• Related security software...

Anti-parasite software can detect and remove many kinds of parasite automatically, scanning the hard disc and system settings for known threats.

But I already have anti-virus!

Anti-virus programs, however, do not usually target parasites, which technically aren’t viruses. Some of them, particularly those that have a category for ‘expanded threats’ or ‘potentially unwanted programs’ will detect some offenders—especially those installed by security hole exploits—but this isn’t their primary aim and they may be less successful at removal than dedicated tools.

But I already have a firewall!

This doesn’t necessarily help, unfortunately. A firewall can prevent incoming attacks and block outgoing connections from unknown applications, but if the parasite is delivered as a bundle with another program, or downloaded by the web browser, there is nothing a firewall can do to stop it getting in. And if it uses the web browser to piggyback its own connections, or even simply disables the firewall software, a firewall would not be able to stop it talking to its controlling servers.

Will removing the parasites stop my other programs from working?

Occasionally. There are a few programs that bundle parasites and refuse to run if they are removed—Radlight might not run without SaveNow, and the various Gator.com applications might not run without Gator. However in the vast majority of cases the culprit software just installs parasites and never looks for them again.

In any case, do you want to carry on running a program that has betrayed you by installing parasites behind your back? There are always alternatives that are really free.

All right, I’ll just run a parasite remover and I’m safe, right?

Not necessarily. Anti-parasite software—like anti-virus software—will do its best, but it is often faced with new threats it can’t fully deal with. And once a computer has been compromised by a virus, parasite or other trojan there is no going back: other code, such as a custom ‘rootkit’ may have been installed that may be unknown or undetectable to the security software.

The likelihood of this for the average home user is slim, so virus and parasite removal is usually acceptable and the easiest course of action. But a computer that deals with a business’s critical sensitive data should generally be reinstalled from scratch—preferably through hard disc imaging for convenience—should it be compromised.

So which software is best?

Caution: there are now many web pages listing and comparing anti-parasite or ‘spyware remover’ software, but many have proven highly untrustworthy, recommending only the software they are affiliates of (that is, they receive a payment when someone clicks and purchases the software). Often their ‘recommended’ software belongs to the worst of the disreputable software packages.

Affiliate links are not necessarily bad in themselves, but be wary of sites that are not up-front about using them. (For the record: DOXdesk currently does not use affiliate links or any other kind of advertising.) Other warning signs to look out for include:

• assertions that one particular commercial program is ‘the best’ and can remove everything;
• failing to link to the well-known free (gratis) anti-parasite software;
• dubious supposedly-special offers;
• scaremongering tactics—for example misleading claims that your computer is infected without any information to back it up, or ‘cheap shots’ like embedding a Explorer window showing your hard disc contents, using Notepad to open a test file, or using Media Player to eject a CD-ROM.

There is no magic bullet, no one program that is capable of removing all parasites. But the programs listed here have a good record and should, if kept up-to-date, greatly help in cleaning up systems.

Free anti-parasite software

Commercial anti-parasite software

Related security software

SpywareBlaster

Site: www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html
Vendor: Javacool software
Licence: free for home use

SpywareBlaster disables certain ActiveX control class IDs associated with parasites. This has the effect of hobbling some parasites if they are installed, and preventing many others from loading by ActiveX drive-by-download in Internet Explorer.

Alternative browsers

Many parasites spread using security issues in Internet Explorer, and primarily affect usage of IE. Other browsers can reduce this risk. Examples: Firefox, Opera, Mozilla Suite, and of course any browser on Mac OS or Linux.

Web filtering

Filtering proxies can stop block web-based attacks by filtering web content for malicious scripting and various other potentially unwanted content. Examples: Proxomitron, Privoxy.

Another simple way to block access to some known-bad sites is by putting them in the Hosts file with a bogus address, so the real server is never contacted. Suppliers of filtering Hosts files (aimed at adverts in general): Mike Burgess, hpguru, Dan Pollock.

IE users can also use a less complete kind of hostname-based filtering by putting suspicious hosts in the Restricted Sites Zone: content can still be downloaded from blocked sites but web pages from them will be run without scripting or ActiveX. Eric Howes’s IE-SPYAD automates the process.

Anti-trojan software

Another breed of malicious software is targeted by anti-trojan software. Much less widespread than parasites, but potentially at least as damaging, remote access trojans give direct control of the computer to a single attacker. Anti-trojan software targets these threats somewhat more comprehensively than plain anti-virus software. Examples: TDS-3, The Cleaner, TrojanHunter, Tauscan.

Other online services

BrowserSpy shows what information your web browser can leak during browsing. AuditMyPC offers an online port scanner.

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