AdwareBot – Review
AdwareBot is an industry leading malware removal system, worthy of serious consideration for any PC user concerened about their online safety.
- Full identification and elimination of spyware, adware, trojans, diallers and worms
- Constantly updated, meaning that you are always protected against the latest threats
- Great looking and lean interface
- Great additional features such as startup manager and add/remove manager.
- Misidentified some legitimate programs as spyware
- Over inflated some risks, making the problem sound worse than it actually was
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AdwareBot 2009, currently in its fourth major release, has taken an already excellent package and packed in even more added features, security and value compared to its best selling little brother, AdwareBot 2008.
The AdwareBot company is made up of some of the biggest players in the anti-malware industry so it comes with high expectations – and it does not disappoint. Contrary to its company name, AdwareBot does not only scan, identify and eliminate adware, it also targets spyware, trojans, diallers and most viruses making it a well rounded and comprehensive consumer product. With that said, however, we were suprised and a little let down that AdwareBot does not seem to pay much attention to rootkit installations which are proving themselves to be the net nasty to look out for in 2009.
Like its competitors, AdwareBot allows you to download and trial its services for free, and only gets you to take out your credit card if you want to remove the identified threats. The download was light and fast (a little over 5MB) and the installation was a breeze.
After installing, the user is presented with a lean, clean and mean interface with some excellent features and an intuitive operating sequence. In fact, AdwareBot was the best looking and amongst the easiest to use solutions that we looked at, although some of the terms such as “qaurantine list” and “ignore list” were not well explained and novice users may find confusing.
We were a little suprised at the results that AdwareBot returned for two reasons. Firstly, while the other solutions only identified whole folders as potential threats, AdwareBot seperately reports on each individual sub-directory which has the effect of over inflating the threat. For example, where Spyware Cease (the editor’s choice) returned six threats after the scan, AdwareBot turned the same six threats into a whopping 81 seperate threats. Whether this is just thoroughness on AdwareBot’s part or a clever marketing trick, we may never know.
The second thing that we noted was that AdwareBot identified the other solutions that we reviewed as “rogue spyware” with risk ratings of 9/10. While bogus spyware is prevalent on the Internet, it seems odd that AdwareBot would label McAfee Secure certified products as ‘rogue threats’. Whilst it is always better to be safe than sorry, it came across a little anti-competitive and a case of sour grapes.
AdwareBot licenses are purchased for a shade under $45, but this represents great value for money. For the purchase fee, you not only get an excellent anti-malware tool, you also get added features such as the add/remove program tool and the startup manager included in the package. Although any Windows user will already have these tools at their disposal, many users will love the fact that these system tools can now be used through AdwareBot’s unbeaten interface.
Although AdwareBot did not come out as the review winner, it still represents an excellent option for security conscious computer users. By purchasing AdwareBot you can expect a seamless scan/identify/remove process and great value for money.
You can download AdwareBot for free directly from the manufacturer’s website:
>>Download AdwareBot<<
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