Direct MP3 Download: Podnutz Episode 26: SuperAntiSpyware Creator, Nick Skrepetos
- Nick Skrepetos joins us to discuss his program SuperAntiSpyware.
- How does SuperAntiSpyware get made?
- How to prevent spyware from attacking your machine
- How did Nick come up with the idea?
- and much more…
Show Notes:
How did SuperAntiSpyware come to be?
– 4 yrs ago Nick developed SuperAdBlocker
– which lead to SuperAntiSpyware out of necessity
Are you the original programmer?
– Yes, I wrote most of the original code
– design and kernel work
What made you design the SuperAdBlocker program?
– My previous company was panicware.com
– after getting a large following I saw the industry changing – rather than reacting to current issues like the well-known malware removal tools
( Mentioned: Ad-Aware and SpyBot )
– I noticed these programs were also not tackling the tough issues
– I wanted to fight the tough problems and predict the next generation of issues
What is your programming background?
– I have been developing software for 25 years
– started on the Apple II and Commodore 64
– developed copy software programs before I was 18
– worked on game development programs published by Activision
– Started a company called Human Machine Interfaces that did the audio software for games like Wing Commander
– It was ground-breaking back then to play more than one sound at a time
– Wrote drivers for the AdLib sound cards
What makes SuperAntiSpyware different?
– We are focused on the hard-to-remove-programs
– Yet we still want to work well with other removal tools
– We can be more agile as a smaller company than McAfee can
– We are not an antivirus company we are anti-malware & anti-spyware
What is the difference between a virus and spyware?
– viruses typically attach to another piece of software
– spyware is installed independently as files in different areas
What are your impressions of the major AV software developers?
– They do require a lot of resources to run
– Not practical
– They are “suites” jack-of-all-trades-but masters-of-none
– We specialize in malware and spyware
What AntiVirus do you recommend?
NOD32
– small footprint
– runs well with our as well as other programs
– AVG has gotten bloated lately
– Norton 2009 has slimmed down this year
– still not considered “light” but better
SuperAntiSpyware free vs the paid version
Why do you give it away for free?
Who is writing the malicious code?
(..and a great discussion ensues)
XP Antivirus 2008/2009: Who are they?
– They are a rouge product stating your system is infected
– They are always creating new variants that we keep up with
– Because we have the solution to this – created great press for us
– Paying them does not remove the virus
– there never was a virus.. the warnings they feed just stop.. for a while
10,000 new threats per week vs false positives
– visit FileResearchCenter.com to see what is running on your computer
Contribute to the project that is SuperAntiSpyware by sending those reports
– They use the reports to make the machine better.
– It *is* a true anonymous report tool. No personal information is detected
– It is designed to be quick and painless
– Start reporting back to this dedicated eradication company.
– Learn about the response SuperAntiSpyware gets from its users
– SuperAntiSpyware customer service is based in the United States
Educating safe web surfing
superantispyware.com/blog is a learning center
And LimeWire? How do you feel about that program?
– It can be used safely if done correctly. – But stop stealing software! – Support the developers!
Macs really get less infected? – It depends upon how big the target is – FireFox and iPhones included – spyware developers go where the money is
