Webroot Spy Sweeper AntiSpyware
- Webroot continues to improve Spy Sweeper, and provides subscribers with regular enhancements to the application
- Detects, quarantines, and deletes harmful spyware
- Simple one-click spyware search
- Time-saving custom configuration options
- Protects against identity theft, browser hijackers, hackers, and more
Powerful detection, quarantine and deletion. Spy Sweeper protects you with a sophisticated database of spyware definitions, the power to disable spyware, and the knowledgeyou need to analyze your risks
Rating: 
(out of 52 reviews)
List Price: $ 29.99
Price: $ 5.99
Webroot Spy Sweeper Antispyware 5.x
- ActiveX Shield thwarts drive-by downloads and blocks potential spyware threats that use ActiveX components to disguise their installation on your computer.
- Spy Communication Shield prevents further spyware infection by blocking incoming and outgoing communication to web sites known to host potential spyware threats and disables spyware programs’ ability to re-install during removal.
- BHO Shield blocks the installation of Browser Helper Objects – a small program that runs automatically every time a user opens an Internet browser and has the capability to track website activity or install a toolbar or add-on without your consent.
- IE Security Shield prevents spyware from adding website entries to your Internet Explorer security settings – which could lead to unwanted downloads and put your personal data at risk.
- Includes 1 Year Subscription of Version Upgrades.
This new version of Spy Sweeper features a brand-new user interface, the result of extensive usability design and testing conducted by our in-house expert user experience team. Spy Sweeper meets the needs of new and novice users who want protection without extensive interaction. Alternatively, Spy Sweeper advanced users continue to have the power to configure the program to suit their unique needs. Spy Sweeper still focuses on what’s most important – offering users the most effective protect
Rating: 
(out of 98 reviews)
List Price: $ 29.95
Price: $ 1.30
Norton Antivirus 2012 with Antispyware 1 PC | 1 Year License - Brand New
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Review by Alexander E. Paulsen for Webroot Spy Sweeper AntiSpyware
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Update 3/9/05
Webroot is really doing their homework. My suto update has me up to 3.5 which has nearly 69,000 definitions installed.
I stopped using IE in favor of Firefox so I had to stop using the Yahoo tool bar with Anti-spy, but trying other packages in concert with Spy Sweep so far Spy Sweeper has found more and been more thorough than any of the other anti-Spy products.
I am trying CA Pest Patrol on another system and will compare the two programs and update again. My experience with CA EZ Armor has been very positive so if Pest Patrol is along the same lines as EZ-AV and EZ-FW I expect to be impressed, but for my money Webroot has the best and most thorough product.
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I use this in combination with Ad Aware. Spy Sweeper finds items that Ad Aware misses and vice versa. The first time I installed the package I ran it and the system found several questionable items. I ran Ad Aware right afterwards and it found 3 more.
A few weeks later I did the reverse on my daughters computer. Ad Aware pronounced the syetem clean while Spy Sweeper found a keystroke logger.
I suppose no one package will do it all. Last week I ran Spy Sweeper and Ad Aware. Both said I was clean. The I installed Yahoo Anti-Spy and it found two items one was another key logger!
Webroot does have great tech support, and they keep the software automatrically updated for you. The latest has over 30,552 signatures. It does a good job, but there is no single package that will find all the spyware out there. I recommend using this in concert with Ad Aware or Yahoo Anti-Spy.
Review by The Rocketman for Webroot Spy Sweeper AntiSpyware
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Review of Spy Sweeper AntiSpyware ver 3.5:
Installation was trivial on my two-year old XP system and Spy Sweeper didn’t conflict with other programs running, including Norton Anti-Virus 2003. It’s possible to micromanage which features you want to turn on/off. If you insist on using Internet Explorer, this product is critical, although I prefer Firefox for my browser which does a better job with pop-up ads and such.
Even with Firefox, however, Spy Sweeper found spyware and cookies that Ad-Aware missed. On a full sweep, it takes something around 10 minutes to sweep your disk, so while it’s not super-fast, it’s not super-slow either and for the most part, you will be running this product when you aren’t using your computer.
The license is good for a year’s worth of updates and assuming Webroot continues to keep up with what’s out there, this is a piece of software that will give you peace of mind for a very cheap price. Highly recommended.
Review by M. Bishop for Webroot Spy Sweeper AntiSpyware
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I’ve been using SpySweeper for 2 years now. It generally does what it is supposed to do. However, it was nearing time for me to renew. SpySweeper becomes a huge, irritating nag when it comes time to renew. Not only does the software bug you all the time, but Webroot sends out reminder e-mails too. With 3 weeks left on my subscription, I decided to renew, mostly just to get rid of all the nagging. Well, guess what? – the renewal process reset my expiration date. Rather than giving me 3 weeks plus 1 year, the renewal starts immediately, and ends in exactly 1 year – which means, that I’ve been ripped off for 3 weeks of paid subscription. Maybe Webroot thinks their users are too stupid to notice this deceptive practice of moving up renewal dates. I’ve complained to them – and if they don’t make amends, then I cannot recommend this product to anyone.
Review by for Webroot Spy Sweeper AntiSpyware
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Spysweeper by Webroot is now at version 3.0.
The good news……..Webroot provided me with V3 under their
ONE YEAR of free upgrades AND updates.
Version 2 was good, but version 3 has a lot of cool new features, like all the new “shields”.
So, when some Mal-ware program tries to change your browser home-page, an alert comes up and asks you if you authorized such a change.
Other shields include a HIJACK shield, IE tracking, IE favorites.
One especially neat one is the STARTUP ITEMS shield.
Before a program becomes a startup item, this shield pops up and asks you for authorization.
NOTE 1 : At this point in time, no single anti-spyware product appears to protect you from ALL potential mal-ware threats.
In fact, I have 4 different, FULL VERSION, products.
I alternate between these 4 programs almost daily.
There is a major amount of detection overlap but not a COMPLETE overlap. Each of the 4 programs finds stuff that the others didn’t.
NOTE 2: I’ve debated folks in newsgroups about mal-ware detection s/w. Several folks comment that since there are FREE s/w packages, so why would anyone PAY for s/w?
First of all, remember, no single package detects every s/w threat out there (that I am aware of).
IMHO, the most indepth ones are NOT free s/w packages.
However, the freeware ones are good to an extent.
As for my personal PC’s security, I use the following s/w packages: 1 firewall, 1 virus-scanner and 4 anti-spyware packages.
NOTE 3 : My favorites?
a. Spysweeper
b. Pestpatrol
c. Mcafee Anti-spy
NOTE 4: Watch out for wolves in sheep’s clothing!
There are several “self-proclaimed” ANTI-spyware packages that actually INSTALL mal-ware onto your pc! You in fact, are shooting yourself in the foot by installing such programs.
Review by D. L. Fleming for Webroot Spy Sweeper AntiSpyware
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I have owned Spysweeper for several years. I have found that a large amount of spyware is not getting caught. In many cases, a **portion** of the spyware was caught, Spy Sweeper did not remove the complete spywhere and I kept getting hits. Tried out XoftSpy software and it found and removed ALL of the spyware.
Even more, I get constant e-mails from Webroot telling me that my “Subscription needs to be renewed.” and that I must send in another $25 to renew. I got caught in their scam once until I started checking my subsciption date. They frequently send out banket e-mails telling people their subscriptions are up even though they may have as much as a year left. I have contacted them several times on this issue with no response or correction.
I am only keeping this software installed because I paid out the bucks for it. I would not recommend it to others mainly because of the decptive business practices and the inability to perform as advertized. Look elswhere.
Review by Burton L. Alperson for Webroot Spy Sweeper Antispyware 5.x
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Microsoft AntiSpyware said my machine was clean.
AdAware said my machine was clean.
Spybot said my machine was clean.
Spy Sweeper found 19 spyware items and 29 traces.
’nuff said. I’m sold.
Review by Joel Blackstock for Webroot Spy Sweeper Antispyware 5.x
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This product has one of the most comprehensive spyware scanning systems of any other Spyware removal product. Norton and Mcaffee are of course beat hands down, since they are virus programs, that act more as firewalls and anti Virus programs than spyware removers. Even specialized programs like Spyware Doctor and Trend Micro cannot compete, as the definitions of this product include some of the most obscure malware. The reason behind the succes of this product, is it’s ability to remove Root kits (files encoded to hide from windows). No other program on themarket can do this at this time.
That said, the removal power of this product comes at the cost of almost everything else. Interface is annoying clunky and slow. Browser guards, are comprehensive, but ONLY support inernet explorer. The realt time protection offered is decent, but is insatiably RAM hungry, and will slow down your computer so much that you’re better off disabling them. Even if you decide to bite the bullet and have a slow PC, this program is incredibly unstable, often will not respond, and will from time to time prevent windows from shutting down. Even the scanning engine is terrible, even if it’s deffinitions are comprehensive. It took my 3.4ghz with 512mb RAM 45min to do a spyware scan with Rootkit checking enabled. After findiding an Apropos media infection it took nearly 2hrs to remove it. At the end of the day, unless you have a terrible infection, you;’re better off with quicker more basic programs like Spyware Doctor, or Trend micro.
Pros
-Comprehensive deffinition file
-Rootkit detection
-And “end of the road” option for serrious infections
Cons
-Slow scaning speed
-Unstable
-Only supports Real Time protection for Internet Explorer
-Clunky interface
-Large File size
Review by M. Klein for Webroot Spy Sweeper Antispyware 5.x
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Pre-5.0, this application was a mainstay in my protection arsenal, and I signed up for longest available subscription for the spyware updates. But 5.0 is like most others here have described — a disaster because of the insane and ludicrous load it places on the machine. It is hard to describe just how unusable it makes the machine. Today I finally had enough and just turned it off permanently, awaiting a fix. Bingo — my PC is running just fine again. It’s a 1 GB memory machine with an older but perfectly fast Athlon processor (1800+). Without SpySweeper running, everything is snappy; with SpySweeper running it is maddeningly slow with occasional long delays responding at all — as if it was about to crash. Lots of disk activity seems linked to SpySweeper showing up as a high CPU user in Task Manager. Bottom line: by changing only one thing in my system — turning off SpySweeper — my system goes from an exercise in frustration to a perfectly good PC.
Webroot’s support site indicates that version 5.0.7 “may” fix these issues and to be sure I had it — yes, I did. The only solution is to turn SpySweeper off. I have requested Webroot’s support site to get access to a 4.x version.
Terrible! And it used to be really good. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a software application go from such high regard to utterly dismal so quickly.
Review by H. Kyu for Webroot Spy Sweeper Antispyware 5.x
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Beats the spyware detection and removal software from McAfee, Microsoft, Norton, and even Trend Micro by far!
I previously had spyware detection and removal software by latter two of the above mentioned companies, and thought that I was clear of spyware. I did not know that there was a key-logging spyware and about nine tracking cookies on my computer, all along, until I installed Webroot’s Spy Sweeper v4. Webroot’s Spy Sweeper did not take long to detect the malware and presented me an option to remove it.
Spy Sweeper’s user interface is friendly and easy to configure, for a systematic person with a good basic awareness about Windows and internet terms such as web-browser, cookies, and favorites. The software help documentation contained with the program is also very helpful in explaining the options.
During installation, at the user’s selection, Spy Sweeper also adds a “Run a sweep” option to the explorer menu, which lets the user to simply right-click on a folder and click the selection to scan its contents for spyware. Its scans in realtime, and its scheduled scans are quite customizable. It automatically updates regularly itself by default. One of my favorite features is a text area in its program screen that shows a detailed log of the performed operations, which allows the user to track its operations, past and current. All these wonderful features, and yet, it does not slow my 1.3GHz (100MHz bus) computer running Windows 2000 with 244MBytes of SDRAM, unlike the other spyware detection software that I have used.
In Addition, Spy Sweeper’s reasonably priced licensing cost and a team of friendly and knowledgeable telephone support staff perfectly complement this already well-written software.
Review by breicr for Webroot Spy Sweeper Antispyware 5.x
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I’ve had it for over 30 days and still don’t know how well it works.
Never have experienced such pathetic customer support. Cleared the way for Kaspersky and Firewall to work with this program, but continued to lock up computer. Asked for them to send me the program with a keycode for retry. Over 20 emails and phone calls, and six weeks later, still waiting. Finally hit the point of requesting a refund (I got an answer to THAT one real quick, “No, you’re outside your 30 days”) Even after that, it has been another week with two more Customer Support(gag, choke) emails and another call, and I am STILL waiting. Contacting the company outside Customer Support has provided no relief. It is absolutely amazing that this type of business conduct could survive. I am just stunned at this situation, I really am. I got taken and I have no way to fix, or get out. Webroot, Beware