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E-conomy / Paul Andrews
Tired of spyware? Try another browser

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I kept track of days I opened Microsoft Internet Explorer. At the close of each day, I ran Spybot, a detection and prevention program.

Here's what happened: On nearly every day I used Internet Explorer, I was infected with a new batch of malware — spyware or adware. On days I used Mozilla Firefox for browsing and avoided IE, without exception I remained uninfected.

Keeping IE from opening was not a simple proposition. As the Web's predominant browser, IE displays more sites, displays them more accurately, and offers broader compatibility than any other browser.

Moreover, Microsoft products like to call up IE automatically from a link in Outlook e-mail, say, or a Word document. One prime example: Netflix pops up in Internet Explorer from a link even if IE is not listed as the computer's default browser. And clicking on links in blogs and Web documents all too often opens IE.

That said, it is possible to use workarounds. Although inconvenient, copying links from e-mail and documents and then pasting them into the browser window works well. So does copying a URL from IE, then shutting the browser down immediately.

What drove me to my experiment was sheer desperation at a constant, growing barrage of attacks on my Windows PC. Not only was the computer slowed to a crawl, it was almost impossible to perform any function without being assaulted by pop-ups.

Downloadable free (donations are gratefully accepted), Spybot scans Windows for bad actors and then removes them at your request. Spybot also can "immunize" a system against offending programs so they don't come back.

But doing this every day is inconvenient and time-consuming. A typical scan can take 10 minutes or more. And immunization isn't foolproof — malware purveyors are constantly coming up with new tricks to avoid Spybot and other spyware detectors.

There is an easier way: simply switch browsers. Using Firefox, I was able to go days without opening IE.

Firefox, released in version 1.0 just last week but available in beta for months, has received a lot of attention for being fast, easy to use, customizable and broadly Web-compatible. To my mind, however, the "killer app" for Firefox is (ironically) malware.
 
A recent survey by the U.S. National Cyber Security Alliance and America Online found that four of every five home computers are infected with spyware. Small businesses also are being hammered. Spyware may now be the No. 1 nemesis of Windows PCs — exceeding spam, viruses and other malware.

The problem is made worse by a couple of things. A lot of users don't know they have spyware, even as their machines degenerate into near uselessness. They may attribute slowness and malfunctions to memory issues, hard-disk problems and other factors.

And when they try to solve the problem, they can unintentionally make matters worse. Clicking on one of those "Your computer has spyware!" e-mails all too often takes the user to a spyware site posing as an anti-spyware site. The unsuspecting user doubly infects his or her Windows PC.

A number of reputable spyware-detection programs exist. The best strategy is to go to a trusted site — PC World is a favorite — for downloads.

As for Firefox, it can be downloaded and installed for free in a minute or two from mozilla.org. You need to configure it to block cookies from third-party sites. That means the occasional inconvenience of having to re-enter logins and passwords on certain Web pages. But the payoff is worth it.

You also can avoid spyware by switching to a Macintosh or Linux PC. And other non-IE browsers can be configured to block spyware. Microsoft has made spyware prevention one of its missions as well, so IE may improve in that regard.

For now, switching browsers is the best defense against spyware.

Paul Andrews is a freelance technology writer and co-author of "Gates." He can be reached at pandrews@seattletimes.com.