Spybot Search & Destroy is an anti-spyware program that quickly identifies and removes intrusive and unwanted programs that slow down PC system  functions as well as compromise user privacy.
Available as a free download from the Team Spybot Web site, the program steps apart from the pack by giving users the option of immunizing their PCs to prevent spyware infestations from happening in the first place.
Features
The customizable Spybot interface is intuitively simple to operate with minimal muss or fuss. Merely click on the requisite icon in the toolbar column on the left side of the application window to search out and destroy spyware; revert to a prior system setting; immunize the system against future infestations; or update the software to keep pace with the latest spyware threats.
Unlike other anti-spyware programs, which can take a very long time to scan through each and every file that resides on a PC, Spybot is able to scan a PC in just a few minutes by focusing on specific places where unwanted spyware programs are most likely to infect the hard drive. Once the scanning process has been completed, potential spyware threats are listed in the program's search and destroy window in red. Users select the individual threat entries that they want to fix and then click on the "fix selected programs" button to remove the threats from their PCs.
Performance
Team Spybot deserves kudos for equipping its anti-spyware program with an advanced mode that incorporates a wide variety of customization options for experienced PC users. In this respect alone, the program is a must for anyone who is serious about threshing today's more obnoxious spyware proponents. Advanced options include the ability to exclude certain PC files from being scanned, changing which categories of threats that are to be searched for, identify specific cookies that should be ignored during the scan, as well as the scheduling of Spybot's search and destroy missions.
Spybot also features a very cool "immunize" control that enables the program to reject certain types of recognized spyware programs before they can even gain a toehold on the PC's hard drive, which gives it a leg up over competing anti-spyware programs such as Ad-Aware. For example, the program can be set to permanently block more than 11,000 previously identified bad addresses in Internet Explorer, which is one of the really great, and effective, features of this program. However, end-users also have the option of being asked for blocking conformation each time Internet Explorer encounters a potentially bad address. (continued...)
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