Ad-Aware 8.0.7

• Quick specs
• Price: Free to try; paid upgrade available $27.96 to buy (Buy it now)
• Operating system: Windows 2000/XP/Vista
• Date added: July 09, 2009
• Total Downloads: 341,029,318
• Downloads last week: 599,838
• See full specifications

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A newer version of Ad-Aware is available.

Download the latest version | Learn more about Ad-Aware Free Anti-Malware 8.1.2

(Download doesn't provide access to previous versions of this program.)

CNET editors' review

Reviewed by: Seth Rosenblatt on January 18, 2009

One of the first applications built to find and remove adware and spyware, Ad-Aware's excellent reputation is well-justified. The Anniversary Edition continues the publisher's tradition of adroitly addressing user concerns, but is still not quite perfect.

Without a doubt, though, this version of Ad-Aware improves greatly on what has come before. It loads faster during your boot cycle. Scans take less time than before, too--the Quick Scan completed in less than 10 minutes. Although we did notice a major false positive crop up for another program's uninstaller, there were no other flaws in the scan. New users should notice that the app performs faster than integrated antivirus and antimalware programs, because only the paid version of Ad-Aware comes with an antivirus engine.

Some important features are disabled in the free version. While rootkit detection is present, heuristics and real-time registry protection are not. Ad-Aware Free cannot scan networked drives, and even a basic feature like the scheduler remains off-limits to nonpaying customers. The proprietary real-time defender Ad-Watch Live has been reconfigured to run more smoothly in the background, however, and long-time fans will notice the change.

Interface refinements make this the easiest-to-use Ad-Aware yet. Action button placement at the bottom of the pane might feel odd to those familiar with older versions, but the forced continuity between windows is a plus. Links to drill down to more information are easy to see, as is the Settings button. Overall, Ad-Aware continues to make improvements and seems to be unwilling to rest on its malware-removing laurels, but the free version is undeniably hamstrung.

Publisher's description

With behavior-based threat detection and integrated real-time monitoring, Ad-Aware Anniversary Edition focuses on core consumer security needs. Instead of adding layers of bells and whistles--thereby slowing your computer and scans down--we have decided to focus on what really matters. Anniversary Edition provides advanced threat protection, and is significantly lighter and faster than our previous versions. Numerous changes in Ad-Aware Anniversary Edition include: Behavior-based heuristical detection; Ad-Watch Live! integrated real-time protection; Customizable Profile Scans and full integration with Windows Security Center.

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