Spybot still relevant?

[DarkRogue]

Hello everyone,

I'm finally upgrading from an ancient WinXP as I'm tired of it.
A combination of factors kept me from doing it earlier, but I'm going to jump over to an SSD and Win7 early next week.

One thing I'd like to do is re-assess the security software on it. I've been using NOD32 and Spybot S&D for a long time, and it's worked out okay. I like Spybot's immunization feature, although I don't know how effective it really is. However, I hated the fact that Spybot's auto-loading residents delayed my windows boot by quite a bit sometimes when it just randomly starts eating CPU power for a while.

I may continue to use NOD32, or switch over to MSE for AV protection, but should I bother continuing to use Spybot? I also have MBAM free, which works for on-demand scanning, although I'm not sure if its real-time protection in the pro version is necessary or not. The only thing I can think of is that Spybot's immunization could be helpful as a passive defense.

I'm also open to other ideas, since I haven't used Win7 much before.

Thanks.

 

[Chiefcrowe]

I haven't used it in a long time but my thinking is that it isn't that good anymore and i prefer MBAM.

 

[Mitch101]

I use Microsoft free security but when I run it hasn't caught anything bad in ages. I think I saw newsgator tracking cookie but I don't recall its been a long time since it found anything.

I still run it even just to block malicious sites from the Hosts files entries.

 

[Slugbait]

They still constantly release definitions, which is all that is truly important for a malware scanner. I still use it, but I also use SUPER.

v2 beta 4 was recently released, here are the top-level improvements:
New modern user interface.
User friendly Start Center to easily discover and start all program parts. Icon indicating a video file
Live Protection allowing you to block and remove detected malware.
More than 60 new assistance dialogs for beginners.
Easier browser selection for immunization.
Fully automated update process. No more manual weekly updates required!
Faster scanning speed. The final version will be even faster.
10-ary threat severity scale.
Much improved program startup speed.
Support for Google Chrome.
Optional heuristic scans.
Advanced self protection against manipulation by malware.
Functionality of RunAlyzer and RootAlyzer is now integrated into Spybot-S&D.
Advanced protection against false positives (thanks to whitelists).
Integrated rescue CD creator.
Signature editor included. Create your own detection rules!
Spybot-S&D can now even scan your iPhone for spyware.
Windows Security Center integration.

Might be worth coming back to and checking it out when it's released

 

[notposting]

Yeah, I just use Avast Free and I believe Windows Defender is on as well. You could always just run MSE and that seems to be pretty good. I have UAC on whatever the default is as well and haven't had any problems *knock on wood*.

 

[DarkRogue]

Well then, I guess it could have its merit as being a backup on-demand scanner to complement MBAM, since it does still receive definition updates, but does anyone still think the real-time protection via TeaTimer is of any use?

I don't want to reinstall unnecessarily, and TeaTimer is my biggest complaint, as it mysteriously eats CPU on bootup for no reason, stalling the process for a few minutes.
Passive protection via the immunization feature is nice, but I'm not sure it does all that much, considering I usually use Firefox with adblock.

I've also scanned my PC over the years with both Spybot and MBAM, and since I've installed adblock, I don't think I've ever seen any results in either program besides a few false positives of changes I made to Internet Explorer's settings myself.

v2's performance enhancements aside, I'm still conflicted on whether keeping Spybot in its current "full-protective" capacity, only using it for passive defense, or ditching it entirely is the best call.

 

[jadinolf]

Not relevant.

Sorry.