SpywareBlaster doesn’t scan and clean for spyware – it prevents it from ever being installed. By setting a “kill bit” for spyware ActiveX controls, it can prevent the installation of any spyware ActiveX controls from a webpage. It does this while not interfering with “friendly” ActiveX controls so your browser can work correctly and you can have peace of mind. You won’t get any more annoying “Yes/No” boxes popped up, asking you to install a spyware ActiveX control. In fact, Internet Explorer will never even download or run the spyware ActiveX control. In addition, it can prevent many of these spyware ActiveX controls from running, even if they are already installed on your system.

The most important step you can take is to secure your system. And SpywareBlaster is the most powerful protection program available.

• Prevent the installation of ActiveX-based spyware, adware, browser hijackers, dialers, and other potentially unwanted pests.
• Block spyware/tracking cookies in Internet Explorer and Mozilla/Firefox.
• Restrict the actions of potentially dangerous sites in Internet Explorer.

It’s a little surprising that there’s no support for Opera, and there’s a noticeable lack of spyware removal capabilities. Although we appreciate the good job that SpywareBlaster has done in the past, this current version doesn’t hold up very well against other security products that prevent attacks and remove infections. And unlike other programs, SpywareBlaster does not have to remain running in the background. SpywareBlaster is freeware for personal and educational use. This version adds SeaMonkey 2 support, improved Firefox (and other Gecko-based browser) support, improved high-DPI support, and many bug fixes and tweaks.

Pros

• Prevents Spyware attacks rather than scans for problems
• Very light on RAM and CPU

Cons

• Feels a bit too
• Probably requires an Adware scanner to be safe

However, you do get the slight impression that nothing much is going on when it’s installed. It doesn’t seem to issue any update messages or warnings although it seems to be doing it’s job properly. As a result, for many people, this program may seem a bit too flimsy to trust 100% but if run alongside something like Ad-Aware as a backup tool, you don’t have much to lose by trying it.