Product Review: ZeroSpyWare

ZeroSpyWare, as the name implies, is a program for detecting and quarantining spyware and some adware after it has been downloaded onto your PC. If you keep the program running in the background, it can actually stop spyware before it is able to download.

The application is developed and marketed by FBM Software, a Las Vegas company.

I tested this software on my home PC over a period of several weeks, while also running AdAware SE. Both applications compare favorably to each other in their efficiency of detecting and removing spyware.

The main features of the app are:

Service:

If you click on "Ask for live online assistance", you will get a dialog box which connects you to a chat session with a ZeroSpyWare technician. The techs are available 24/7, 365 days a year. Their web site, however, isn't as extensive as Lavasoft's (makers of AdAware), which has a user forum as well as many downloadable add-ons. (In other words, the site isn't for techies but for general business users. )

The spyware database is updated weekly, and automatically sends the updated list to the users' PCs. Says FBM: "Using our established Customer Relationship Management (CRM) services, we not only support our products but also gather information on spyware behavior. The tight integration of CRM with product development means we can instantly integrate customer issues with the next product update."

FBM adds that "spyware is written with commercial intent; which means they are created ten times faster than viruses."

Quarantine:

This feature enables the user to isolate the program. Many anti-spyware programs will list advertising or login cookies as spyware, which can lead to exaggerated 'spyware found' counts. Removing the adware from these programs might actually disable the program, so ZeroSpyWare classifies these separately. Also, the program's search engine uses several criteria for spyware to cut down on false positives, whereas other products use only basic text searches.

Blocking of Browser Helper Objects:

BHOs are a special class of apps designed to work with Internet Explorer. (This is the way Microsoft allows you to customize IE.) Unfortuantely, spyware authors have designed programs to slip onto your machine in this manner. With the BHO Blocker turned on, ZeroSpyWare protects the Windows Registry where the entries are stored. There is also a specific feature for blocking ActiveX spyware.

One thing I really like about ZeroSpyWare is its great user interface: It's a dashboard format with sleek blue panels. A transparent screen displays the various programs it finds as it scans your PC. Upon completing the scan, the monitor presents a list of all cookies, apps and processes (known and unknown) running on your PC.

ZeroSpyWare is for home or small company use, and there are 10- and 15-user versions available. It works only on Windows operating systems - no Mac or Open Source.

Question: Has anyone else used this ? I'd like to hear your reactions.