Effectiveness of Ewido?

I have AVG Antispyware 7.5.1.43 plus - the paid for version. Nowadays it appears to find no malware at all, yet when I run a manual scan on the free version of AdAware 2007 it often finds tracking cookies for me to delete, which the AVG software is supposed to do automatically.

Am I alone in wondering whether AVG Antispyware is now of no value?

 

Probably you activated the option automatic deletion of Tracking Cookies.

Apart from the fact however it is really strange that for months no newer version appears. Only each day a few Sign. Update.

The question in the forum concerning a new version of AVG-AS was not officially answered here until today.

 

Yes, I did action the automatic deletion of tracking cookies.

I find that the fact that, for some time now, that AVG Antispyware has reported no findings a bit disturbing, in that I may be giving space to useless software.

Thanks for your reply!

 

Then it is actually clear that no found Cookies is indicated. Because these are directly deleted automatically.

Otherwise this program seems however relatively useless. Unfortunately, because there were, when it was still another German enterprise, very interesting and excellent planning and announcements. In the meantime this program is only average. Other manufacturers made here enormous leaps forward. What was continued to develop since 7.5.1.43? Absolutely nothing. No HIPPS was implemented, no IDS, only day after day some signatures.

Of the ambition former, innovative German enterprise remained nothing more.

 

As the first step please verify the Scanner settings:

Scanner -> Settings tab -> option "Scan for tracking-cookies" option
in the "Possibly unwanted software" section.

If it does not help, in order to prove the AVG AntiSpyware detection works properly you can try the the EICAR test file (available at http://www.eicar.org/) this file
is just "test virus" so it is completely harmless. This file should be
detected as "Not-A-Virus.Test.Eicar". Please let us know the results.

In case the Shield option "Remove tracking cookie automatically", as
mentioned by Steel, is not enabled, we will appreciate if you can provide us the cookies detected by Ad-Aware for analysis. Please send them (preferably in the password protected archive*) to virus@grisoft.com

Thank you

*How to create password-protected archive
http://www.grisoft.com/doc/faq/?num=596


Ondrej Novotny
AVG Senior Support

 

My copy of AVG is and always has been set to delete tracking cookies automatically. I no longer have the cookies as they were deleted following my discovery of them, thanks to AdAware 2007 free version. The cookies concerned were from the UK's Daily Telegraph and Belfast Telegraph.

If I find any more later today, I will forward them to AVG as requested.

 

Why are there actually no more pieces of news for as-version? For months absolutely nothing moves. Long time was prominent ewido to remain innovative and ambitious the number one.

Emsisoft for example was always a step in the back. In the meantime Emsi with newest version is 10 steps in front. Is to remain in such a way? Why doesn't Grisoft undertake anything to make AS again to the number one?

 

We are busy working on new tools and features for the whole AVG security suite. In the meantime, several things have been released for different parts of the suite, there is also AVG AntiRootkit available, other things to come really soon.

 

Thanks for these information. However I exclusively speak of the former Ewido Suite. Thus, the AVG-AS version. All other AVG of products is completely uninteresting for me.

To that extent again the concrete question: What may we expect time near at innovations to the AVG AS Suite?

In former times one than customer was integrated and was allowed to feel quasi than member. In the meantime one experiences nothing at all more. That is which one as intolerable situation designate can and may. 7.5.1.43 publication date: 14. June 2007, that's what i'm talking about. Since this date no innovations, etc. took place at this software.

Have a look at a-squared. I don't like it, but they are an example of how it can also run. And/or it should run. They do their best to fascinate and inspire their customers again and again.

 

The solution appears to be for Wilders to do to AVG what they did to DiamondCS in Australia as the frustration of forum members appears to be growing.

 

I would not like to operate here by any means bashing. But it is really amazing, in what short time formerly faithful ewido customers decide for another product. The explanation is completely simple. One looks for an excellent price achievement relationship. And, the optimum solutions. And such does not read already for quite some time under any circumstances more AVG-AS Suite. Again: I personally here exclusively speak of AS Version.

 

Let me say, dealing with cookies is the job of ur browser.
Configure ur browser to deal with them and u will not see even a single unwanted cookie on ur PC.

 

Exactly the same I see it also. To that extent the question arises. What actually brings an additional AVG-AS to version? Except Cookies this did not find to something with me also ever.

 

I have just run a full scan of my PC using the free version of AdAware 2007, and 8 tracking cookies were found and now removed.

Before I deleted them through AdAware, I used this program to save them as an XML file and zipped them (Winzip Pro) then attached them to an e-mail to virus@grisoft.com.

My paid-for up-to-date version of AVG AntiSpyware continues to make me believe that it serves no useful purpose at all, especially as it is et to 'remove tracking cookies'.

 

Hi Green Giant/Steel & others,

Ewido/AVG has the following page where you have NO reason to pay for their product, it's updated EVERY day just like paid versions & just finds the same cookies you are finding, go here http://www.ewido.net/en/onlinescan/ It takes a couple seconds to download the latest files AVG/Ewido has updated daily, if FREE, it really never finds anything on my computer but a couple cookies which are harmless.

Hope to help everyone not pay for not needed software,
Steve

 

One reason AAW is so popular is because it excels in finding cookies and mru's. IMO it's useless and gives people a false sense of security.

With that train of thought it sounds like you would say the same thing about any company. It's possible that you're a safe surfer and use common sense when you're at the helm. If you really want to test the capabilities of AVGAS, and other fine security apps, maybe you can visit some rogue url's and install some fake codecs, vundo's, etc.

 

I have just upgraded to AdAware Plus, with automatic scanning. Beforehand I was using the free version and doing a manual scan which found tracking cookies. Now more tracking cookies are removed automatically. AVG AntiSpyware, which is supposed to give automatic protection in the paid-for version, hasn't found any for ages or anything else. All that appears to happen is that the number of threats allegedly protected against rises daily, but without any evidence of malware found and removed.

When AVG AntiSpyware was Ewido and German controlled, one could read frequent comments from the support staff here. Since the change of ownership this welcome source of information appears to have almost dried up.

I am still wondering what AVG AntiSpyware does, if anything.

 

Fully agree with your Statement. Product care and Customer Care ( Service ) seems to have become a foreign word for them. I recommend for a long time more this product to nobody. I am not moved nevertheless. From me those can put themselves their product where does not sun seemed.

 

You want malware on your computer?

 

No, of course I don't want malware, but when the program was Ewido and German owned, the software used to show malware removed. Since AVG ownership the figures are big fat zeros, so is it working, or am I just seeing a daily increasing number of threats allegedly protected against?

 

Maybe your computing habits of today are safer than those of yesterday.
Maybe your main signature-based scanner got better detection rates.
Maybe you've been lucky.
Maybe you're deeply backdoor'ed by an unknown, nasty, firmware-based beast.
BTW, cookies aren't malware.

 

You may not consider tracking cookies as malware, but AVG AntiSpyware is set to stop them automatically, but doesn't report finding any. AdAware Plus does find and delete tracking cookies automatically: beforehand manual scans of AdAware 2007 (free version) also did so.

This change of apparent effectiveness has only been evident since Ewido ceased to be German owned, so is AVG AntiSpyware working, or just showing a new increased threat protection figure daily and nothing more?

 

It might be a bug.

 

Of course it soesn't report finding Cookies, it NEVER has done! Any Cookies found realtime by the shield are removed silently - no report is generated and they are not quarantined. The only indication that anything has happened is the fact the detected malware counter is advanced for each finding. Set the counter to zero, do some surfing, and see for yourself.

As to the nastier stuff, it is my personal experience that there seems to be less exploits out there just at the moment. My AV is hardly blocking anything recently, whereas a while back it was picking up dozens of things. I'm sure that the picture will change if a new zero day exploit is succesfully deployed.

 

Thanks for your message TopperID. Not only has my malware counter in AVG AntiSpyware not advanced beyond zero, but AdAware (free) on a manual scan removed tracking cookies which had been left by AVG AntiSpyware. A few days ago I switched to the Plus edition of AdAware and am now finding more tracking cookies, which presumably should have been removed, albeit silently, by AVG AntiSpyware.

My PC is always left online, excepting only for when I am away from home.