Who Watches The Watchdogs?
The Programs of the Week are two free-standing spyware “watchdogs.” The only care they need is frequent updating. “Spyware Blaster” and “Spyware Guard” are both sentinels for your software. They are on constant surveillance of what is coming into your computer - similar to your firewall. Here you have to choose the one you want, since having two performing the same procedure can set up a conflict and cause a process slowdown. (Last week’s column discusses conflicts in multiple anti-spyware programs.) They are both free and only need updating. My choice? Spyware Blaster: It uses “kill-bits” to prevent Web pages from installing spyware or unwanted components and also to block many of them from running if they are installed.
