Checking for Spyware
My Dad rang me recently wondering why his computer was running slow and how he could check for any nasties living inside his machine. I put together some instructions for my brother Tim not too long ago, and forwarded these onto Dad. And so, for posterity, I am putting them here as well - I hope they help someone !
1. Follow these instructions step-by-step
http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=35407
* Close all instances of your browser.
* Open Control Panel and double click on Internet Options.
* In the General tab, in the section where it says Temporary Internet Files, press the button marked Delete Files.
* In the dialog box that pops up, place a check mark in the box Delete all offline content.
This removes all subfolders that are created in the Temporary
Internet Files\Content.IE5 folder.
For users of Netscape or Mozilla:
* From the menu bar, choose Edit / Preferences / Advanced / Cache.
* Press the Clear cache button.
For Mozilla Firebird/Firefox:
* From the menu bar, choose Tools / Options / Privacy / Cache.
* Press the Clear button.
For Opera users:
* From the menu bar, choose File / Preferences / History and Cache.
* Press Empty Now.