Introduction to Lavasoft Ad-aware SE Personal Edition 1.6

Ad-aware is a program designed to find the files and even registry objects that have been infected by adware and other malware.  If you keep getting pop-ups even when you’re not using the internet, or if you think your computer might be collecting usage information without your permission, run Ad-aware.  It is a good idea to scan your computer regularly, just like a virus scanner, even if you don’t think anything is wrong with it.

Tips
Sometimes it takes a few tries to get rid of malware.  Some malicious programs even re-create themselves every time you start up your computer.  If you notice that you are still having problems, such as pop-ups, even after you complete a scan and delete all the problem objects, try running Ad-aware at start-up, scanning, then immediately restarting and scanning again.

Some programs will keep reinstalling, even after Ad-aware deletes all it can of them.  You may only be able to permanently get rid of these programs by reformatting your computer and reinstalling everything.  The best way to avoid problems like these are to avoid getting them in the first place.

NEVER open e-mail attachments you don’t expect to get, especially if you don’t know who they’re from.

DON’T click on pop-up ads when surfing webpages.

ALWAYS click [No] if a website’s pop-up asks you to install a program on your computer, unless you went to that website for that purpose.

NEVER install “helpful” software like searchbars for your web browser or automatic weather alerts.  These programs all too often come with adware and data miners.

Getting Started

• To run Ad-aware, click Start > All Programs > Lavasoft Ad-aware SE > Ad-aware.

Ad-aware will start up, displaying this screen:

• To operate each part of Ad-aware, click on the button labeled with its name.  These functions are outlined below.
  

Functions of Ad-aware

Status

The status screen shows details of the current status of your computer in terms of viruses and malware.  It is based on the last system scan Ad-aware completed.

From the status screen, you can access lists of files you’ve placed on the Ignore and Quarantine lists.  These are explained under Scan.

The status screen also includes a link to update Ad-aware.

You can also initiate a scan of your computer by clicking the [Start] button in the lower right corner.  This will take you through the same series of windows as the [Scan now] button would.

Scan now

Scanning is one of the main functions of Ad-aware.  Start a scan by clicking [Scan now].

Next you will need to choose your scan mode.  The default option, Perform smart system-scan, is usually a good choice.  If you are only concerned about a single folder or drive on your computer, you may want to choose the third option to save some time.  As you become more familiar with Ad-aware, you might also try out some of the custom options.

Click [Next] to start the scan.

Ad-aware will begin scanning your computer, file by file.

If it finds any problematic objects while scanning, the summary below will include those new objects. 

You can continue working or running other programs while scanning, and Ad-aware will pop up if it finds any objects.

To end the scan at any point, click [Abort].  Otherwise, the scan will continue until your computer has been fully scanned:

This scan has found one file that may contain some kind of virus or other malware. 

To continue, click [Next].

The results list will come up, listing each file Ad-aware has marked as a problem.  You will be able to see what kind of object each one is, why it is a problem, and what the file path of the problem file is, which will help you identify whether the file is supposed to be on your computer.

This file, for example, is located in the Cookies folder, which means that it is a cookie from a website someone visited.  Ad-aware has designated it a Data Miner, which means that it is collecting data about users on this computer and sending that data to someone who uses it for their own business or sells it.  Data mining is often an invasion of privacy, and in some cases can lead to identity theft.

You will have to decide what to do with each object.  Select an object by clicking the checkbox next to it, then either Quarantine it or delete it.

If you think you might need a file for something and aren’t sure you can delete it, select it, then click [Quarantine].  This will keep the file from infecting your computer, but will give you a chance to save it.

Otherwise, select all the objects, then click [Next] to delete them.  Ad-aware will ask whether you want to delete the objects.  Click [OK] to complete the deletion.

Ad-watch

This function is only available on full versions of Ad-aware.

Help

Click the [Help] button to open the user manual.  If you are interested in more advanced functions of Ad-aware, you may want to read the manual.

Settings

To change options such as when Ad-aware runs and which parts of your computer to scan, look through Settings.

It is likely that you will not need to change most of the settings from their default.  One option you may want to change is Run at Windows start up, which is found under General Options.  Click this option if you’re having trouble with stubborn malware that runs at start-up and can’t be removed while it’s running. 

Open WebUpdate

Click [WebUpdate] to automatically update Ad-aware.