November 7, PC Tools. User rating:. Don't compromise your security with second best! Recommended by experts and editors around the world as the best Anti-Spyware. FREE customer support for all users. Frequent advanced updates ensure that you are always protected. Detects, removes and blocks all types of Spyware and Adware threats. Easiest to use with intelligent automatic protection. Best Spyware Protection. Used by Millions World Wide.
Detects, removes and blocks all types of Spyware. Easiest to Use Spyware Doctor is advanced technology designed especially for people, not just experts. In particular, while it will scan and identify any malware present it won't perform cleanup without registration. The attractive and easy to scan security report card replaces last year's simple list of statistics.
The ordinary scan-and-clean process may fail on some badly infested systems, so Spyware Doctor now offers a collection of more aggressive cleanup tools.
If malware blocks installation tech support can make these tools available for download. Rather than simply fail when balked by aggressive malware Spyware Doctor's installer lets the user know what happened and offers suggestions to solve the problem. This threat removal tool is especially designed to wipe out common threats that prevent installation of antivirus software.
The handy ISO burner tool grabs the very latest code and burns it to the media of your choice. This tool is especially effective at cleaning up threats that subvert components of Windows itself. On the other two, the installer displayed a clear message indicating that the installation did not finish correctly.
It specifically targets threats known to interfere with installation of security software. Unfortunately, the Threat Removal Tool didn't work. Tech support next supplied a batch file to correct a malware-engendered Registry change that blocked installation. Good idea, but the malware changed those settings back right away. After gathering logs, tech support recommended detailed steps to manually remove the fake antivirus that was preventing installation on one system; this approach finally succeeded.
This tool downloads the very latest code and virus definitions and handles burning it to CD or, if you prefer, to a bootable USB drive. Alas, the rescue CD alone didn't do the job. Another set of instructions from tech support got the second system into a state where Spyware Doctor could install and perform a full cleanup.
I did eventually get the product installed on all infested systems, but doing so was a lengthy challenge. Many users would have given up long before they reached the eventual solutions I found. Norton installed on these same systems with only one minor hitch that it fixed all by itself. Some users don't bother installing security software until malware has totally pwned their systems. PC Tools should concentrate serious effort on making Spyware Doctor's installation bulletproof.
Antivirus Scan and Clean Spyware Doctor took quite a while to scan some of the infested test systems—over an hour in some cases. Since a full scan on my standard clean test system took just 25 minutes, the scanner is clearly doing extra work when it detects malware.
On several systems, Spyware Doctor announced that one scan wasn't enough. It requested a reboot, after which it ran another scan. The lengthy and repeated scanning paid off with unusually thorough cleanup. To be fair, Webroot also took a long time cleaning some infested systems. With 7. Webroot and Spyware Doctor both detected 93 percent of the samples in a separate test using commercial keyloggers.
Webroot removed what it found more effectively, scoring 7. Norton came third with 6. Note, though, that the ability to remove actual malware is significantly more important than removing a commercial keylogger. That fine a level of detail is great for reviewers like myself, but most users don't need to know the exact name of a threat that was removed or the list of related file and Registry traces.
New in this edition, the handy Report Card feature offers a high-level view of your system security. Note, though, that while it achieved good scores in my hands-on tests, Norton and Webroot scored better.
And while the independent labs generally praise Norton, they don't have much good to say about Spyware Doctor. I'd still recommend ponying up the cash for an Editor's Choice product, but in the current economy you may feel otherwise. More Antivirus reviews:. Good 3. Bottom Line If you need antivirus protection for three computers, Spyware Doctor is a bargain. Its three-pack price would get you just one copy of Norton or Webroot.
However, its protection doesn't quite come up to those top-of-the-line antivirus tools. Pros User can choose balance of protection versus performance. Good scores in malware blocking and removal tests. Above-average phishing protection. Site-rating tool offers full details. Includes several tools to remove tough malware.
Priced lower than most. Cons Difficult to install on malware-infested systems. Left some rootkits running after supposed removal. Poor scores in independent lab tests.
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