POISON

Remedyantispy and its corrupt security tool siblings are a poisonous wave on the face of the Internet.  While many medical remedies are poisonous on some level, this isn't a fact that carries over into the World Wide Web.  It's especially true in the way of Internet security.

Remedyantispy is just like all the other rogue antispyware programs.  It's a bundle of spyware pulled together with a bare antispyware program and a sales page.  The antispyware program isn't even worth salvaging.  It has few or no definitions on it, and it doesn't update.  It's just a waste of space.

The goal of Remedyantispy and its ilk is, obviously, not security.  It's geared to make you think you have a ginormous spyware infection, take you hostage, and drag you to their sales page.  If you buy the program, you've wasted money.  Maybe all of your money.  It's the plague, not the cure.

No real antispyware program will take the sales approach that Remedyantispy does.  They only get away with this approach because they operate out of countries that don't legislate this activity.  Once you give them your money, chances are it's gone for good.

So, how does this Remedyantispy infection go down anyway?  The first thing you'll see is a pop up screen telling you that your computer is infected.  What happened behind the scenes is that a Zlob Downloader just downloaded it for you.  It also shows a scan in progress, which is another feature of spyware.  After all, it's only looking at your temporary files.

After that scare tactic, Remedyantispy will redirect you to its webpage, whichever one hasn't been caught and banned yet.  Yet another spyware tactic, this is called browser hijacking.  Now it will say that you should buy its full version to clean up this infection.

You ostensibly can say "no" to the offer, but for some reason, Remedyantispy won't let you leave.  Now that they have you, did you really think they would let you go so easily?  Again, no legitimate antispyware program would do that.

So, here's the rub.  The only obvious way to leave is to say 'yes,' right?  Wrong.  You can shut down your browser, and you may have to use ctrl-alt-delete to do it.  You can turn your computer off.  You don't have to be bullied by Remedyantispy.  Now you can go and spend your money on a real antispyware program.

It really is too bad that this knowledge cannot protect you from infection.  The infected websites and downloads aren't meant to be obviously infected.  They will sometimes even clone real ones to seem legitimate.  The content of the websites is no real sign, either.  Mostly, it's adult-oriented content, 'free' videos, and the rogues home pages, but they can go beyond that.

All I can do is keep you from getting ripped off by these bugs.  The rest is up to your antispyware program.  Don't settle for less than 100% removal guarantees.  Anything less than complete protection falls short.

About the Author:

Carl runs a site devoted to helping you rid your computer from all sorts of spyware and malware at http://www.spyzooka.com/