BleepingComputer.com: Windows Defender

Hi all
I have had Windows Defender for quite a while and it has never found a problem! This has to be wrong. Full scans and quick scans always end with..."Your computer is running normally."
Ad-aware SE and Spybot always find problems. Has anyone else found this problem? Is it a problem? Could it be that whatever definitions loaded to Defender never arrive in my system. Sounds to good to be true???
I upgraded to 1.1.1593 yesterday and ran both a full and quick scan and...you guessed it...no problems.

Check the Definition version of Defender. Should be 1.15.2233.6
If Spybot and AdAware are finding something other than cookies, I would be concerned.
A lot of users NEVER find any malware on their computers. I credit that more to smart user habits than what antimalware product they have.
What are Spybot and AdAware finding?

Hi buddy215
Thanks for your reply.
As far as I can tell, I have the latest version 1.1.1593, Engine Version is 1.1.2101.0. This is strange that you have a totally different version number to mine.

Every time I checked Defender for updates it would say none available and when I saw someone on here was using version 1.1.1593 I uninstalled my version and installed the (what I thought was the most recent) version.

Sorry if I mislead you...my Ad-aware and Spybot are finding cookies. I just kill them off and all is well, but my concern is that Defender has never, ever found a cookie. Sounds like a false negative to me.
It's not the sites I visit so much as where my kids go. (Nothing sinister just kids sites.)

I like to run all these cookie killers at least once a week to keep things working smoothly.

You have the correct version of Windows. I asked to check the Definition version to see if you had the latest updates since you thought you might be missing them. Defender was last updated on the 7th. They update every week or so.
Read the info in the link below to block the adware/tracking cookies known as third party cookies from installing on your comp. Then you want have to be bothered by them.
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/cookies.htm

Block third party cookies in Firefox
http://www.elharo.com/blog/privacy/2006/11...s-in-firefox-2/

This post has been edited by buddy215: 15 February 2007 - 10:46 PM

Aussie Ness, on Feb 16 2007, 03:46 AM, said:

Although this was posted some months ago, I thought I'd add a comment here for the sake of anyone browsing through (like me). Defender is specifically designed NOT to detect tracking cookies. It's surprising how many people still comment on the fact that other programs such as AdAware and Spybot detect lots of things that Defender doesn't - but invariably it turns out that the detected threats are only tracking cookies.

The fact is that if you use your computer with care and take sensible precautions, there's a good chance you won't be infected by spyware, and in those circumstances Defender will continue (correctly) to find nothing!

Here's another statistic: I've never had a false positive alert from Defender. I can't say the same about most of the other antispyware scanners I use.

I agree. Windows Defender (religiously updated) has missed EVERY piece of malware caught by Trend Micro Internet Security Pro, Spybot S & D, XoftSpySE, & Spyware Detector. About the only thing Windows Defender consistently warns me about, are changes made when I download & install anything. Whoop-de-do.

No single product is 100% foolproof and can detect and remove all threats at any given time. The security community is in a constant state of change as new infections appear. Each vendor has its own definition of what constitutes malware and scanning your computer using different criteria will yield different results. The fact that each program has its own definition files means that some malware may be picked up by one that could be missed by another. Thus, a multi-layered defense using several anti-spyware products (including an effective firewall) to supplement your anti-virus combined with common sense and safe surfing habits provides the most complete protection.

Defender doesn't detect cookies as spyware just delete browsing history to get rid of cookies. ad-aware wasn't much help to me... use spyware doctor from google pack (not the official site or you have to buy it to remove) It helped remove rootkits trojans and spyware while ad-aware was removing cookies finding no problems during an infection. I also use Norton internet security: also useful. like quietman7 said no anti-whatever can detect all types of malware In the PcWorld it said the highest ever rated anti-malware only detected 40something% of it. Scary if you think of it... Hackers have nothing better to do than break computers... they should get a life.

This post has been edited by ///: 24 March 2008 - 02:14 PM

hijakd, on Nov 25 2007, 08:44 AM, said:

How many of these detections were tracking cookies?