Following the recent thread, I thought I'd post this article lifted from a
newsletter published by Scot Finnie. As it states, its only a quick look
with first impressions, but the comment about the User Interface did make me
smile - considering what has been said. Anyway, here it is:
First Look: Microsoft AntiSpyware 1.0 Beta
By now you've probably heard that Microsoft intends to jump into both the
anti-spyware and antivirus product categories by offering Windows utilities
that
will reportedly be free for download. Last Friday, Microsoft offered its
first version of the anti-spyware program it purchased from
Giant Company Software
in December.
Microsoft AntiSpyware
1.0 Beta. You can download it and try it for yourself from this
Microsoft Downloads page.
For more on the news about Microsoft AntiSpyware and reactions from
companies like Symantec, see TechWeb's
Microsoft Jumps into Spyware Space with Beta.
I spent two hours over the weekend putting Microsoft AntiSpyware through its
paces with a test machine that, conveniently, has been cruising the Internet
almost daily for six months without spyware protection. I downloaded the
latest versions of Ad-Aware SE and Spybot - Search & Destroy, since they're
both
free and in wide usage. Here are my conclusions.
Microsoft AntiSpyware offers a real-time monitor, automatic
spyware-signature updates, and provides an optional peer-based
exploit-detection data-sharing
mechanism to help protect against fast-breaking new spyware woes. Microsoft
AntiSpyware has an Internet Explorer anti-hijack feature. It can quarantine
or delete spyware it disables on your machine. It has the ability to
optionally save a Windows restore point. It gives you a way to access to
Internet
Explorer BHOs (Browser Help Objects), ActiveX apps, start-up programs, IE
settings, IE toolbars, and other trouble spots that tend to be the areas
where
spyware latches on. Microsoft AntiSpyware has a rich feature set for a
program you can download for free. It also has an absolutely excellent user
interface.
Unlike Ad-Aware, Spybot, and Pest Patrol (the latter wasn't tested for this
story), Microsoft AntiSpyware completely ignores "tracking cookies." In its
Tracks Eraser, found in the Advanced Tools area, it offers a function that
erases all your cookies, but it doesn't display standard advertising cookies
on its scan-results screen. Frankly, I find this refreshing. In most cases,
so-called tracking cookies, while not exactly beneficial, don't threaten any
significant aspect of your privacy. They support Internet advertising, but
not in invasive ways. It might be possible for a tracking cookie to be used
in conjunction with a truly nasty spyware program, but I suspect Microsoft
AntiVirus would be on top of that sort of thing. Deeper testing would be
required
to be sure.
Like every other spyware test I've ever run, the test subjects each found
threats the others didn't. I'll spare you the details, but when you strip
out
the tracking cookies, Ad-Aware didn't find jack, Spybot found the
ever-popular DSO Exploit (but since this PC's version of Internet Explorer
is completely
up to date, it's probably protected from DSO), and Microsoft AntiSpyware
found the MySearchBar adware and MySearchBar browser plug-in. Of the three,
I would
have to give a D to Ad-Aware, a C to Spybot, and a B to Microsoft
AntiSpyware. All three of these tools should have found MySearchBar, though.
Only the
new Microsoft utility did.
In our tests, AntiSpyware's very rapid Quick Scan found the exact same list
of problems found by its very slow Deep Scan. Unlike Spybot and Ad-Aware,
AntiSpyware's
deep scan appears to scan every file on your computer. It takes
significantly longer than the other two products - about as long as Pest
Patrol's scan
took in tests I ran a couple years back. The AntiSpyware scan is
configurable, and it operates more like Ad-Aware's scan than SpyBot's.
AntiSpyware's results
screen also provides a good deal of information, something that's always
been a Spybot weakness.
All in all, I'm impressed with Microsoft AntiSpyware at first look. I intend
to use it on a long-term basis, and if it makes sense to, I'll come back and
review it in more detail later.
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