COUNTERSPY V2
Reviewed May 2007

What’s It Do?

CounterSpy monitors the computer system, locating and removing spyware, adware, and keyloggers. The latest version claims to have a much smaller footprint and uses fewer system resources.


Does It Do What It Promises?

Reviewer 1: Yes, CounterSpy is an excellent tool for rooting out spyware. My first scan found four Trojan horses and some innocuous cookies that none of my other spyware programs, including SpySweeper, Spyware Doctor and Adaware ever found. The tools included in CounterSpy: My PC Explorer allows you to view otherwise hidden applications that run on startup and connect to the Internet. You can modify these applications if you don't wish to have them running. My PC Check allows scans for security vulnerabilities, offers suggestions for changes to settings and tells what the new default setting will be if the change is accepted.. Each time I utilized this tool I found fewer vulnerabilities to the point of finding none. The History Cleaner allows the user to specify which items to clean and CounterSpy cautions that this can affect many items and cannot be undone. I currently allow CounterSpy to clean my Internet History usage logs, Web browsing history, temporary folders and search history. You may also choose to have CounterSpy clean files stored by applications such as Real Player, WMP, Quicktime, WinZip, ICQ and MSN Messenger. A Secure File Eraser is also included in CounterSpy for those files that the users wants to be unrecoverable by any currently known file recovery tool.. This is a true benefit for those concerned about security issues especially when disposing a hard drive. Finally, CounterSpy utilizes Active Protection, engaged as a real-time protection against spyware.

Reviewer 2: Yes, probably. I say “probably” because in the months that I used it, I apparently had no threats to my system, and thus nothing serious for CounterSpy to find. It did call my attention to programs it regarded as “suspicious,” but all of those programs were innocuous and were programs I wanted to run.

Reviewer 3: Yes, it seems to work well and is not intrusive or a resource hog.

Reviewer 4: In my experience, CounterSpy is as effective as any of the other anti-malware programs that I have used in identifying real and potentially dangerous programs or files that get onto my computer. Fortunately (?) we have teenagers whose browsing sometimes gets their computers into difficulty. On more than one occasion, CounterSpy has been the only program able to weed out and deal with the troubles they have generated. On a number of occasions, I deliberately tried to infect my computer by adventuresome Web surfing, protected only by Counter-Spy. Subsequent scans turned up very few problems, mostly quite harmless cookies, so the program appeared to function well.

Reviewer 5: It absolutely does, and without interference with any other programs on my computer. I have lots of programs on my machine, including other malware detection programs which I was able for testing purposes to run at the same time. That compatibility alone is remarkable.

Reviewer 6: CounterSpy performed as promised. There were installation glitches and some limitations as described below, but the spyware detection and prevention worked as promised on my main system.

Reviewer 7: No. While it does detect, prevent, and delete when necessary, malware based not solely on signatures but also based on behavior, and offers additional detection of rootkits, its claims of, Remove Spyware without Losing PC Performance and CounterSpy V2 . . . treads lightly on system resources, making long, resource-draining spyware scans . . . a thing of the past, simply proved to be untrue in my testing.


Was It Easy To Install?

Reviewer 1: Yes, installation was simple and straight forward. The user interface is easy to understand and utilize. I found nothing unusual in the EULA (End User's License Agreement). My updates and scan settings were set up within a few moments of installation.

Reviewer 2: Yes, though I pity anyone trying to download this 35MB file on a dial-up connection. The installation itself went quite smoothly. However, before being given any opportunity to select program features, I was told “The program features you selected are being installed.” I found this a bit puzzling.

Reviewer 3: Yes, it installed with no problems.

Reviewer 4: CounterSpy is quite a big download; on a high-speed connection, it took about 2 minutes to download the 35.8 mb file. Installation is straightforward. I could choose the location of the software, but not where to place the icons or shortcuts. Note that if installing over an older version of the program, quarantined items will be removed. I also found that it was a good idea (and in some cases, necessary) to close down most other running programs. Once installed, the program then needs to upgrade; it checks for the latest version of the software and updates the security risk database. This can take quite awhile. When that is finished, the program will start (without a reboot), and go through the set-up wizard. I took the defaults all the way through, as the proposed settings were acceptable. This step only takes 2 or 3 minutes.

Reviewer 5: Yes. Download, installation and registration were a snap, flawless. A dialup connection would probably require an overnight download though, because the file is large.

Reviewer 6: CounterSpy would not install on my Windows 2000 computer. The error message stated that the installation wizard could not find a needed file and the installation was aborted. This was in spite of the same installation file having been used to install the program on an XP machine. This computer is running Windows 2000 with all of the latest patches and upgrades.
Installation on Windows XP SP2 laptop system, triggered error messages stating that there was a problem locating the source disk for Windows Easy CD Creator 5 DVD Edition. It was looking for the program ecdc5dvd.msi. I searched my hard drives for this program and it was not found. Despite this apparently nonsensical error, installation seemed to go to completion after it was bypassed.

Reviewer 7: No. It is an unexplainably huge 35.5MB download—more than three times the size of many of its competitors with similar functions and definition bases. Worse though is that the installation procedure is slow and cumbersome in that it is a two-stage process requiring a reboot and then a very slow signature update process (see below).


Good points?

Reviewer 1: CounterSpy is an aggressive and up-to-date spyware tool that I found to be extremely effective when compared to other programs. I am able to auto-update spyware definitions at a time of my choosing rather than simply on startup so I don't slow down my boot time. Scanning is also set up by the user to be done automatically and I notice no slowdown in CPU times at all. This program runs so quietly in the background that I don't even notice that a scan is taking place and am simply presented with the results of the scan upon completion, and given options regarding how I wish to deal with any problems CounterSpy found on my system. The tools provided in addition to scanning for spyware include: My PC Explorer, My PC Check, History Cleaner, Secure File Eraser, and Active Protection help me keep my computer in pristine condition. The price of $19.95 US for such a valuable tool is well worth the investment and well below the industry standard for such tools other than freeware. Customer service was very quick to respond to my inquiries.

Reviewer 2: CounterSpy offers real-time protection against a number of potential computer security threats. It warns against and/or blocks certain changes to Internet Explorer, to the Registry, to the right-click context menu, and to the Hosts file (which translates Internet host names to their IP addresses). It also watches for the presence of Trojans, and it checks applications against its threat database and if necessary it takes action based on indicated preferences. It will also tell which programs are scheduled to run at startup, which processes are currently running, which programs are connected to the Internet, and more (though it provides little or no additional information about most programs, unlike, say, WinPatrol PLUS).. It will also offer suggestions to make the system more secure (though in my case, the only suggestions involved Internet Explorer, which I rarely use). CounterSpy checks its database each day and usually updates the definitions several times a week. It will also scan the system, either automatically at the scheduled time or whenever you manually requested Full scans took on average less than 40 minutes.

Reviewer 3: In addition to being a good spyware tool with “active protection” (runs in system tray), CounterSpy v2 has a good selection of useful tools to help you manage your computer.
Under the “System Tools” section My PC Explorers allows viewing and modifying various settings, some that are hidden and hard to find like downloaded Active-X components. It marks these “Safe”, “Unknown” or “Hazardous” and gives the source of the file if known. It also allows viewing which programs are connecting to the Internet. via which port. (good for port forwarding) Other “Explorers” on the same tab look at the startup folder, running processes, BHO’s, Hosts file and Explorer hooks. The My PC Checkup runs a system security scan and suggests changes for more security. Given my current state of lock down, I felt the suggestions on this one were too restrictive. It seemed to point everything like search, home page etc. at a Microsoft site and, because it warned several times that changes could not be undone I declined to use it. History clears history files in 17 areas. Secure File Eraser Claims to make erased files unrecoverable. There was no way I could verify this since I don’t have a forensic level file recovery tool. I personally have access to various tools that will do all these things but this saves the trouble of installing and running several additional programs. Simple can be better!

Reviewer 4: CounterSpy provides a 15-day free trial period, with no restrictions. After that time, the program will continue to scan but the database it uses to check for new malware will not be updated. Since new spyware variants are frequent, it is necessary to keep the definitions current.
Some suggest using several anti-spyware programs to detect malware that may be missed by one or more applications. I have used CounterSpy by itself, and in combination with three other anti-spyware programs running concurrently. CounterSpy has not caused any conflicts with other anti-malware programs. I am glad that CounterSpy no longer insists on checking for updates every time the computer is booted.. Regular updates can be scheduled.

Reviewer 5: The interface is very clean and well laid out, consisting of three areas: scanning, active protection or tools. Since I have disabled Windows auto-updates, I was advised of that and given a link to enable if I wish to.) In the scanning submenu, many of the typical choices presented by other programs , scan type, scheduling, custom settings as well as history of the previous scan are provided along with a reminder of the renewal date. The active protection item gives system-wide security levels to choose from and what areas changes must be monitored with an explanation of each choice. Separate or blanket actions may be selected to allow, quarantine, notify, etc. System tools adds a tool to venture into and change hidden folders. A PC security checkup tool scans the system for weak points and suggests actions (irreversible) and a file eraser. A section is set aside for quarantined items that are inactivated and cannot run. These may be deleted entirely or restored if necessary for proper operation. I'm not usually a fan of programs that divert from their original purpose in order to bulk up with ancillary programs that may attract buyers. The quality of the primary product typically gets diluted and the satellite programs sloppy or otherwise inferior to independent products. For my use, I found these tools worked flawlessly and might save some consumers the time/expense in installing other similar products. Further, the spyware detection and correction are the best of the popular ones I've tested, seemingly the most thorough of all of them. I ran a number of crude tests, at various times running CounterSpy and a competitor against one another, by testing both, but in reversing order. I was not able to find an instance of a competitor picking up something that CounterSpy had left behind. Conversely, with CounterSpy running first, the competitor did not detect anything remaining. Included in the testing were Spybot, Adaware, SpySweeper and Ewido. NOD32 created havoc with one of my basic programs, so I did not do a comparison with it. As noted above, the various interfaces were very easy and sensible, allowing for easy maneuvering. Areas of doubt were either explained on-screen or in the support sections. If all else fails, support is available through email, a Web form or free telephone support. The computer runs silkily in the background, seemingly using little resources. Even if scanning, I've found I can operate with only a slight deterioration in performance while performing standard tasks.

Reviewer 6: The option to set security level at “Trusting, Cautious, or Paranoid” is a nice feature as is the detailed descriptions of what each of these settings mean. Its initial scan found two issues on my system which had been passed over by other anti-spyware programs. Both were ranked as minor adware threats. As with most software in this category, options of how to deal with the potential threats range from ignoring them, through quarantine and removal.
There are a number of additional tools for examining and changing system settings to improve security. These tools are above and beyond what many anti-spyware programs provide. “My PC Explorers” deals with Internet Explorer’s settings, associated programs and files. “My PC Checkup” examines security settings and suggests changes to implement. “History Cleaner” removes your records of searches, URL entries, and opened files, with a strong emphasis on Microsoft Programs and Adobe Acrobat. . Finally, “Secure File Eraser” overwrites deleted data multiple times to make it unrecoverable.

Reviewer 7: There are many things to like about this program. First, and most important with any anti spyware or anti malware program, is how well it finds and deletes spyware/malware. In my testing as with all testing of anti-malware products, I purposely downloaded several test viruses as well as visited multiple unsavory sites known to be ripe with infections of all sorts—especially Trojans, dialers, highjackers, and general spyware-- with the real time guard protection disabled. I then scanned my computer with CounterSpy, quarantined the findings, restored them to my machine, and repeated the test with five of the most respected and highly rated antispyware programs on the market: A Squared, AVG AntiSpyware Free (formerly Ewido), ZeroSpyware, SpySweeper, and Spyware Doctor. [Note: I no longer use AdAware or Spybot Search & Destroy in my testing simply because their results are no longer even marginally competitive.] The results were not what I anticipated but still excellent. CounterSpy identified and was able to delete a very respectable 95.8% compared to the other applications tested which ranged from a low of SpySweeper (79.8%) to a high of AVG Antispyware (97.2%). In visiting sites known to be full of spyware and with all real time or defense guards enabled, CounterSpy excelled stopping 93.6% while the others stopped or caught a low of 74.8% (SpySweeper) to the next highest of 91.6% (AVG AntiSpyware Free). In the above testing, CounterSpy and AVG AntiSpyware Free were nearly tied in their overall identification and deleting abilities as are their signature file databases, both of which are in excess of 750,000 files—the highest, by far, in the industry; however, CounterSpy sets itself apart by including a root kit application as well as several additional security-type tools. One feature that I found especially attractive and a feature which I would encourage all other applications to follow was the ability to turn off the animated graph Counterspy and even the progress bar during scans to help conserve resources. Disabling these pieces of eye candy did result in CounterSpy using fewer resources. Something else for which CounterSpy is to be commended is their unique program update configuration wizard. While I have serious issues with their update procedures generally (see below), this unique feature of having a separate configuration wizard which guides through the update and allows a change or simply a transfer of original settings or configurations, is appreciated and something for which the folks at Sunbelt are to be commended. Sometimes it is a small touch such as this one that indicates a company’s true attention to customer needs and ease of use. My experiences with technical support were somewhat in the vein of a “best of times, worst of times.” I contacted support by email three times. Each time, my support request was answered in under 24 hours; one time in under two hours!


Weak points?

Reviewer 1: I found that, CounterSpy initially took quite a long time to completely update all the spyware definitions. Once initially done, definitions are loaded and merged much more quickly several times per week, but the number of definitions not included in the actual installation was quite large. I would rather see them include their most up-to-date definitions with the installation package although I understand that the constantly changing world of spyware would make this difficult. Perhaps at least a weekly addition of the newest definitions might be helpful. The version of CounterSpy that the NNT Panel was given to review contained a problem with Active Protection not automatically being enabled on every computer reboot. I was aware of this problem and I was also aware that an upgrade was available to resolve this issue. This upgrade was released on March 9, 2007. Unfortunately, I wasn't automatically offered this upgrade. If the consumer doesn't contact customer support regarding the issue they don't automatically receive the upgraded version. I did contact customer support about the problem on March 23, 2007 and was very quickly given a link to install the upgrade.

Reviewer 2: One service CounterSpy performs is watching running programs and warning about any that it doesn’t recognize or that it considers suspicious. I was surprised at the number of rather well-known programs that CounterSpy didn’t recognize, such as Dreamweaver, WS-FTP Pro, Copernic Desktop Search, JVPowerTools2006, Powermarks, parts of Photoshop, and a number of others. I dutifully checked “Allow” and “Remember This” the first time CounterSpy challenged them; I assumed that from then on CounterSpy would simply permit “allowed” programs to run., but each time I rebooted, CounterSpy challenged many of the same programs again. I wrote to tech support about this problem. This began a saga that dragged on for more than two weeks and involved three different tech support people who sometimes provided contradictory information. After two weeks of exchanging daily messages (except on weekends) and jumping through a variety of time-consuming and increasingly frustrating hoops, I finally got a message from tech support person #3 informing me that the problem I was having with was a known problem that the company hoped to fix in the future. CounterSpy adversely affected the working of my screen capture program, HyperSnap. When I reported this to tech support, they informed me that CounterSpy has no exceptions list through which I could tell it to ignore certain programs. The suggested workaround was that I disable CounterSpy each time I wanted to run HyperSnap, be sure HyperSnap’s HotKey option is checked, and then re-enable CounterSpy. I use HyperSnap a lot, and I consider this workaround to be very unappealing. Eventually, I found that if I single-click rather than double-click to open HyperSnap from the Quick Launch bar), CounterSpy will leave HyperSnap alone. Support is limited to weekdays from 9am to 6pm EST. These limited hours seem inappropriate for a company concerned with computer security. The lack of response on weekends is especially a problem because, unlike Ad-Aware, a-squared, AVG, Spybot Search and Destroy, The Cleaner, and other security programs, CounterSpy apparently offers no users forum to which one can turn for help. CounterSpy’s terminology was at times quite puzzling. When I went to the screen to ask for a scan of my computer, among the options I could choose to include or not were Low Risk Programs and Cookies. Next to Low Risk Programs was a link that said View. I clicked on View, expecting more information about Low Risk Programs; instead, the link led to a listing of the top10 spyware threats discovered that week, including three Trojans and two Trojan downloaders, hardly “low risk programs.” I was also puzzled by the meaning of the Active Protection setting “Allow without Notification.” This was the most trusting of five settings and is the Unknown Application and Action default setting for dealing with Trojans and with most programs. Especially where Trojans are concerned, I would have expected a more restrictive setting such as “Block with Notification” or “Prompt.” However, I was assured by tech support that “Allow without Notification” would not allow known Trojans and was the best setting to avoid false positives. “Allow without Notification” thus seems a rather misleading term. I’m also troubled that one has to set protection to the lowest of five settings to avoid false positives. It is not possible to include CounterSpy in the context menu that appear when right-clicking on a file in Windows Explorer. I use this function frequently with other anti-malware programs such as AVG Anti-Spyware, a-Squared, The Cleaner, and McAfee anti-virus to make sure that files I’ve downloaded are free from malware before I open or run them. Even without the right-click menu, I could find no way to use CounterSpy to scan an individual file.

Reviewer 3: None really. Minor inconvenience with the security settings in that the “Cautious” setting still picks up low threat tracking cookies which can be set to “always ignore” This soon goes away as an issue once ignored. What it does find can be ignored, always ignored or quarantined.

Reviewer 4: CounterSpy, like many others in its category, has expanded from being strictly a guardian against spyware, Trojans, keyloggers, etc. Besides these functions, the program includes a number of other “system tools” that are supposed to help improve computer security. I suspect that the average user will not really find them to be very useful. They do not want to have to understand what an Active X component and, even if they do venture into these areas, many of these tools are too geeky, so therefore useless. CounterSpy includes additional functions, such as “covering your surfing tracks” and a “Secure File Eraser.” Although fine in themselves, I would prefer to have an anti-spyware program keep out spyware, and do that efficiently and extremely well. Let other programs, such as Win Patrol, monitor what is going on in my start-up folder, or what processes are running, and be able good, and understandable information about all these parts of the computer. There are excellent programs that deal with proper file management, including thorough deletion, and still others that can monitor and clean up the browser cache, Media Player playlists, MRUDs and whatever. As CounterSpy loads itself into memory when the computer is booted, adding in these features, which must also be loaded into memory, unnecessarily increases the resources that CounterSpy takes away from other applications.
Reviewer 5: Within the overwriting eraser (“shredder”) there appear to be no options as to the number of overwrites for varying levels of security, nor is it discussed in supporting material. The download is large (perhaps the tools could be segregated), about 40 mb. This might prove a problem for those with telephone modems. The shredding is seemingly effective, having thwarted my attempts to restore it, but it would be helpful for some to know the level of that security.

Reviewer 6: When CounterSpy detected an “adware bundle”, a list of registry values were listed within a highlighted block. The list ran off the boundaries of the block and thus were incompletely displayed. While very specific mention is made about monitoring Internet Explorer and its add-ons, no specific mention is made of Firefox and other Web browsers. I was surprised to see that Windows Genuine Advantage ActiveX was listed as an unknown application. This is a tool that Microsoft uses to verify that a legitimate copy of Windows is. It is nearly ubiquitous and has been around long enough that it should be on CounterSpy’s list of known applications.
“History Cleaner” does not include Firefox or other non-Microsoft browsers. “My PC Checkup” indicated that my Internet Explorer security settings for various levels were below the minimum and offered a fix to bring them to their standards. However, there was no way to discover what those changes would be, and there was a warning that those changes could not be undone.. While this may be acceptable to a novice user, I have intentionally customized my settings for the various zones and strongly desire to see what will be done and undone before it is a fait accompli. There was a “learn more” link to click, but it only gave a generic description of the overall process.

Reviewer 7: This is a program that I expected to like and really wanted to like. Having in an NNT review, given the first version of Sunbelt's CounterSpy a glowing report and a high recommendation, I was prepared to need to find new superlatives to give this latest version. I am very disappointed that I cannot fully recommend this program in its current state. It uses approximately 81MB of memory while scanning. That is totally unacceptable. For many (and probably the majority) of users this could constitute from between 30% to 60% of one’s entire memory! At the high end this would make most if not all other applications unusable. If using an ISP such as AOL which requires approximately 70% of total resources available to operate properly, it would be nearly impossible getting on line. Even for a user with a more powerful desktop, this amount of memory usage could represent as much as 10% of the total, still unacceptable. Worse still, when loading at startup, CounterSpy registered a peak memory usage of 243,416K which was so excessive that it would prevent any other startup items from loading and, in fact, freeze my desktop until all startup loading had completed. I could not even right click to bring up Task Manager but had to use the old Ctrl/Alt/Delete method to do so. In fact, just the loading of CounterSpy added 28 seconds to my boot time—which, in my case, almost doubled my boot time! While scanning using any of the scan choices, it ran my 3.8G Pentium IV CPU at 80% to 100% for the entire scan—only occasionally dropping to 80%. Not only does this make one’s computer inoperable but it is dangerous and possibly fatal to the health of the processor. Also in regard to computer resources, CounterSpy, in addition to the two processes running in the Task manager at all times, installs a new Window’s Service and has it configured to automatic so that it is always running. This is fine if the program is used in an always-on, real-time configuration; however, if all of the real-time functions are disabled with the intention to use CounterSpy only as a manual scanner, that process (SBCOUNTERSPYSvc.exe) remains running and consuming resources for absolutely no reason. Furthermore, the service is reset to manual so that it will only start when called upon, it will reset itself to automatic (always running) on the next reboot. This service has to be reset to manual to run a manual scan and then return to the Windows Service applet to disable after scanning. As to CounterSpy’s scanning, I found it to be a bit faster than most but am a bit confused and concerned in that on my computer it identified as having scanned only 58,830 files while other anti spyware programs identified as having scanned from between 126,789 to 152,334. I also could see no indication that it scanned archived files or system restore points. It is critical that system restore points be scanned as malware—especially Trojans—are notorious for hiding in restore points and then reinfecting one’s machine on each reboot, even if they were successfully removed from files and registry. The entire updating process is cumbersome. It downloads signature file updates incrementally, i.e., separate updates one at a time, e.g., #553 , $#554, and so on. Each one of these increments takes from 6 to 7 minutes to download and complete what is referred to as “merging definitions.” The GUI which is not unattractive in overall design does need some attention as the font used looked like something typed with an old manual typewriter using a bad ribbon. And while it is generally intuitive, the process of moving between tools in the “My PC Explorer” section is not. The return arrow button in the tool bar returns the user to the main Screen. It took me far too long to realize that the small grey dotted arrow at the bottom left of the screen moved me between individual tools, an inconvenience that could easily be corrected. CounterSpy is to be commended for offering a fully functioning trial version but the skimpy 15-day trial period is penurious - especially when a 30 day trial period is generally the standard in the software industry. Unfortunately, each answer to my support questions was the same: uninstall and reinstall the program. It seems to me that if there are bugs common enough to require a need to uninstall and reinstall three times out of three, they need to find a temporary workaround until they can issue a fix. Asking a customer to uninstall and reinstall repeatedly on a program that is huge with which to begin is to, in my opinion, needlessly inconsiderate to the customer. If I were a dial-up customer or even one on a slow DSL, I would have uninstalled it and then asked for my money back.


Other comments?

Reviewer 1: Active Protection is a nice feature to have; however, I never encountered anything that created an alert from this Protection Tool so I can neither verify nor deny its viability. I did not find that having Active Protection enabled slowed down my computer in any manner, which is fantastic as other programs such as Spyware Doctor and SpySweeper's real-time protection do have an impact on CPU and software functionality speeds.

Reviewer 2: Three of CounterSpy’s eleven Application Protection monitors watch for changes to the browser, but only for Internet Explorer. No similar protection seems to be offered for Firefox, Opera, or other browsers. Similarly, one of CounterSpy’s system tools will remove cookies and all history of Websites visited, URLs typed, auto-complete forms, and passwords, but again, only for Internet Explorer.

Reviewer 3: Overall, quite a useful product. It handles several system maintenance chores eliminating running more software than needed. It has low impact on system resources showing zero CPU use unless actually doing something. I wish others were this light footed! I’ve stopped using Spybot Search and Destroy because it used 50+ % of my system resources, usually at the most inopportune time. My system would slow to a crawl and I would check the running processes and it was always the culprit. I couldn’t seem to set the random scan at off times. CounterSpy, on the other hand, allows me to easily set a scan time to whatever time I wish so the impact on my resources is not an issue. A typical scan takes about 40 minutes but I never noticed a slow down. While watching a scan in running processes, it peaked at 56% for a short time then settled down to a average 20% for the rest of the scan.

Reviewer 4: Overall, I have been pleasantly surprised by this new version of CounterSpy. A large number of people volunteered to take part in its beta testing which continued for several months, and there were forums where people offered their feedback and comments. As well, it is quite reasonably priced. However, because of the extra, unnecessary additional functions, I am not likely to replace my current anti-spyware program (AVG anti-virus, formerly Ewido) with CounterSpy.

Reviewer 5: For me, this is a keeper! It is smooth, fast and unobtrusive. It was effective “out of the box” and customizations are understandable and easy to do. For skeptics, there is a free, full-functioning trial of 15 days. During the trial, not only will CounterSpy detect malware but it will also make the actual repairs and corrections.. This is well thought-out and implemented software, and priced, at $19.95 US, below the other highly-regarded products which it outperforms.

Reviewer 6: The license limits to one installation on one computer. Despite the quirky installation issues, CounterSpy ran without problems on my XP laptop.

Reviewer 7: Sunbelt has claimed that its latest version of CounterSpy has improved in reducing its use of resources. That may be true, but is has not been enough of an improvement. CounterSpy is not alone or unique in this problem. Nearly all of the current crop of anti spyware and, in fact, computer security programs generally, have become bigger and bigger, offering more and more and more protection, and adding questionably useful tools unrelated to the programs’ primary purpose. As these programs have grown, so have their use of resources. Software has become what might be called bloatware. There is something seriously wrong when a single program requires as much RAM memory as was required for one’s entire computer only five or 6 years ago. Sunbelt’s CounterSpy does an excellent job of removing spyware/malware, and its price of $19.95 is a bargain compared to its shareware competitors; however, when the drain becomes so high as to diminish your enjoyment of one’s computer, we have to one has to ask whether such a program is worth having.


Will you continue to use it?

Reviewer 1: Absolutely!

Reviewer 2: I doubt it.

Reviewer 3: Definitely, a very good and effective tool. Added to my arsenal of “spy ware tools” on a permanent basis.

Reviewer 4: Yes, it will remain on my test computer, but it will be removed from my main working machine.

Reviewer 5: Yes. In fact, I have moved all the similar products to the back shelf, to be invoked only occasionally for curiosity or testing purposes.

Reviewer 6: Yes.

Reviewer 7: Yes, but only for an occasional manual scan.

Operating Systems Used In This Review
Windows XP Pro, XP Home, XP Media Center Edition, 2000
 

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