Dave, Trina, It's been a few years since I've seen this one. Wow, people are still falling for it? Thanks for the links to check out these particular hoaxes. I personally think you should check out anything you get from email that sounds alarming. Even hoaxes that just create extra email are harmful to someone. I'm talking about those scare tactics like the one about toilet spiders in airplanes, or the gut-wrenching ones like the little boy who is collecting get-well cards before he dies. Go to Google and type "[keyword from the warning] hoax". You'll get a page with several sites that have done research on these things. They'll give you a history and cite what verification they have tried. Most are hoaxes, some have some truth, but don't pass them on until you check them out! Now, about the one that says that unsolicited virus alert warnings or offers to scan your system for spyware are sometimes spyware or viruses themselves...anyone know for sure? I haven't figured out how to query Google on this to get a useful answer. What I did find might help Ivy with her question. Here's a link to a page with quite a few spyware detection programs, including links and whether they are free or not: http://virusall.com/downspy.shtml. Cheri

Hi Ivy, Unfortunately, you are experiencing a very common problem. No one program seems to be able to get rid of everything. You are also correct about the so-called "free" programs. Most of them only scan your computer, tell you what's wrong, and then tell you that you have to upgrade before you can clean the problems. There are some excellent programs that I recommend very highly. (Incidently, the best way to determine which ones DO work is to get recommendations from others who have successfully tried them.) AdAware is a good free program that does work well. It won't necessarily get everything, but it gets a lot and cleans it, too. Windows Defender, formerly called Microsoft Antispyware, is an excellent piece of software that is also free and really works well. I have had great success with this one. NoAdware isn't free, but it's an excellent investment for your computer security. Yes, I am an affiliate for this one, and would recommend that anyone buying it become an affiliate, too. Like you, Ivy, I've bought a few others and have been very disappointed with them. However, this one works great, and as far as I'm concerned, is a MUST HAVE for your computer. To sum up, I recommend that you get all three pieces of software and run them all, one at a time. This should clean out any malicious software presently running on your computer. Also, make sure your antivirus and firewall software is up-to-date. If you're running free antivirus and firewall protection, which can be a bit dicey, I would recommend AVG Antivirus and Zone Alarm Free. Sygate Personal Firewall is better, but Sygate has been bought out by Symantec and the firewall is no longer free. I hope all this is helpful to you, Ivy. If you run these programs and your computer is still slow, it's likely time to run a product like Norton Systemworks from Symantec or Registry Doctor, available from Download.com. These products may look expensive, but they work well and will save you a ton of money in bills from the computer repair people! God bless, Dave

Hi Cheri, You asked the following question: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Now, about the one that says that unsolicited virus alert warnings or offers to scan your system for spyware are sometimes spyware or viruses themselves...anyone know for sure? I haven't figured out how to query Google on this to get a useful answer. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The short answer is - YES! Only download this kind of software from known sites or on the recommendation of someone you know who has actually successfully used the software. It's ridiculously easy to create fake "antispyware" or "antivirus" software. God bless, Dave

Thanks Cheri and Dave appreciate all the help.

Dear Ivy, It also sounds to me like you have a browser hijacker. Go to: http://www.download.com/HijackThis/3000-8022_4-10227353.html and download "Hijack This". This is a free spyware-free program. When you have it installed, run the program, and when it gets done, choose to save the log file. Then copy that information and go to this: http://hijackthis.de/index.php Paste that log file into the white box there and hit the button underneath that says "Analyze". This will give you detailed results of what add-ons are in your Internet Explorer that shouldn't be. You can find complete instructions on how to do this, plus other resources for cleaning up your computer and keeping it safe at my Autosurf Guidelines page. The url is in my signature line. If you need any help with this, please contact me. You can skype me, too, if you have skype. My name is shanbol. www.skype.com if you want to get it. Take Care,