Ad-Aware 2007 Plus

Lavasoft's Ad-Aware 2007 Plus is the paid version of the popular scanner Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Free. Despite Ad-Aware 2007 Plus's name, Lavasoft says that the program combats spyware as well as adware. For the $40.50 price, you get automatic updates, scheduled scans, and real-time protection that's missing from the free product - however, in our tests Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus failed to meet basic performance expectations.

At the time we evaluated it, Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus was not available for Windows Vista, so we tested it on a Windows XP machine. (Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus Vista version launched shortly before we went to press.)

In tests performed by AV-Test.org, Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus failed to detect (let alone disinfect) nine of our 10 active spyware samples. While Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus uncovered all 10 active adware samples, it disinfected just 35 per cent of their files and Registry entries.

Presented with a massive batch of 110,380 inactive adware and spyware samples, Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus's on-demand scanner managed to detect fewer than 2 per cent of them. Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus doesn't provide protection against rootkits, either.

Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus detected changes to the Internet Explorer home and search pages. But it failed to detect changes to the Hosts file and additions to the Startup folder.

Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus is easy to navigate and its TrackSweep feature erases browser surfing history from Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Opera. Unfortunately, Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 Plus's two-pronged design creates needless complications.

You have to configure the Ad-Watch component, which handles real-time monitoring and proactive protection, separately from the rest of the program. Also, the Swedish-based company does not offer telephone support to Australian users.