Out of curiosity, is there a way to scan for spyware online without having to download anything? Suddenly I'm getting popups here when I never got them before, but this isn't my computer. May be nothing, but I thought I'd see if there was a way. :)

well, I'd give that a qualified yes - it depends on which browser you are using.

Anything that you run online would have to be something that runs in your browser - like an ActiveX component, which Internet Explorer uses. Firefox doesn't allow programs to run in the browser(for better security) so this isn't possible unless you switch back to IE and make sure ActiveX is enabled.

There are many free ones you can try:

http://www.doxdesk.com/parasite/
http://www.spywareinfo.com/xscan.php
http://www.webroot.com/services/spyaudit_03.htm
http://download.zonelabs.com/bin/promotions/spywaredetector/index3.html

all of those are free scans from well-known companies (I wouldn't try anything from an unknown company - there are some bad ones)

It's IE, so I'll try those. Thanks!

Out of curiosity, is there a way to scan for spyware online without having to download anything? Suddenly I'm getting popups here when I never got them before, but this isn't my computer. May be nothing, but I thought I'd see if there was a way. :)


Try StopSign and you can run a free virus/spyware scan.
http://www.stopsign.com

There's a company called StompSoft which has anti-virus protection programs you can use on your computer. You can either purchase the product(s) or download online.

StompSoft's website:
http://www.stompsoft.com

Their commercials appear from time to time on various broadcast and cable channels.

Or you can visit the Housecall and Trend Micro and they have a free scan and there's no need to download.

Trend Micro website:
http://housecall.trendmicro.com/