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Does Webroot Secure Anywhere scan for adware and spyware and remove those from my computer?
Hi jwgintujunga

 

Welcome to the Community Forums.

 

In my honest opinion the answer is 'No' but let me qualify that...WSA concentrates on what will physically harm your system, i.e., malware of all sorts (including sypware which is different to adware), and it does that very well.

 

What it does not concentrate on is the adware side of things as much of that is quite easily avoidable by the adoption of safe & sensible browsing habits, i.e. only download software from the author's website or a site recommended by the author, and when downloading and installing software making sure that one carefully reads/checks the nature of all options & selections offered during the process...just doing that will mean that the vast majority of adware will be caught/prevented.

 

It also does not have an immunise function such as SpyBot has but then again it does protect users from malicious and potentially dangerous sites in other ways, etc.

 

The good news is that if you do want to run another security app on the same system as WSA then WSA will play well with it as it is designed to from the ground up.

 

Personally, I believe that WSA should cover all your requirements but as I said...it can be run with  other security apps if so required.

 

Hope that helps?

 

Redgards, Baldrick

 

 
Hello Jwgintujunga,

 

I would like to elaborate on Baldrick's response.

 

Malware is not as simple as its label of “adware” and “spyware.” It depends on how it is installed and what it does once installed.

 

Most adware and spyware are what we call Potentially Unwanted Applications - these are applications that often come with special offers and terms to use their software. These can be uninstalled through the control panel. These types of applications are annoying, but not outright dangerous.

 

Most users do not know the difference between PUAs and actual malicious software (“malware”). If you ever have any problems with an infection of any kind on your machine and need assistance, we ask that you contact our technical support team. They are trained on issues like this and will assist in removing and explaining what is occurring. Webroot's technical support is included with your subscription and comes at no extra charge.

 

Regards

 

Raymond Lewis

 

Data Security Analyst for Webroot.

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